Breaking: Braves Face Potential Offseason Blow as Homegrown Star Eyes Orioles
The Atlanta Braves were hard at work over the last five years, locking in as many of their homegrown stars as they could to long-term extensions.
Unfortunately, there was one notable omission.
Though the Braves are by no means a cheap organization, they’ve never been one for spending big on free-agent starting pitchers. They’ve got a solid crop of starters in-house, but one team that does not could be a solid bet to pick up Fried–the Baltimore Orioles.
“The Orioles badly need to add a No. 1 starter with Burnes departing via free agency. With Kyle Bradish, who finished fourth in 2023 AL Cy Young voting, likely not returning until the end of next season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in June, enter Max Fried,” Ruminski said.
“The two-time All-Star has posted a 2.87 ERA since 2021. Fried slots ahead of Zach Eflin and Grayson Rodriguez to give Baltimore a solid top of the rotation to compete in the tough AL East.”
No team wants to lose a pitcher like Fried, who has three Gold Gloves, six career complete games, and a World Series ring to his name. But the Braves are better equipped to handle such a departure than most.
If Baltimore is Fried’s next destination, the Braves could take solace in the fact that he wouldn’t face them until the World Series. Next, they’d have to determine who gets his spot in their 2025 rotation.
