The Atlanta Braves hope to see a better version of Max Fried when they host the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday night in the second contest of a three-game series.
Fried (0-0, 40.50 ERA) will be opposed by Arizona right-hander Brandon Pfaadt (1-0, 1.80), who will make his first career appearance against the Braves.
The Braves took the series opener on Friday by overcoming a late three-run deficit to win 6-5 in 10 innings. Last season the teams split six games, with each winning two of three on the road.
Fried was unable to get out of the first inning in his first start against Philadelphia last Saturday, a game the Braves still won 12-4. He threw 43 pitches to get two outs, walk three batters and allow three runs.
The left-hander is ready to put that outing aside and find the form he flashed in the spring and last season, when he went 8-1 with a 2.55 ERA.
“Definitely off a little bit,” Fried said. “Just wasn’t able, obviously, to get back on track as quickly as I wanted to, and things kind of spiraled out of control.”
Fried has made three career starts against Arizona, going 1-0 with a 2.50 ERA in 18 innings. He did not face the Diamondbacks in 2023.
Pfaadt was outstanding in his first appearance on Sunday against the Colorado Rockies. He allowed one run on five hits, no walks and six strikeouts in a 5-1 win. He appears ready to build on his successful postseason, when he made five starts, posted a 3.27 ERA and struck out 26 in 22 innings in helping Arizona reach the World Series.
“I obviously don’t have everything figured out, but I have more figured out than I did previously,” Pfaadt said. “And I think that’s how you grow as a player. That’s how I’m looking at it and just trying to keep getting better.”
The Diamondbacks continue to have late-inning bullpen issues since closer Paul Sewald sustained a strained left oblique three days before the season opener.
Kevin Ginkel, the primary setup man last season, could not hold a two-run lead against the Braves on Friday. Kevin McGough gave up the game-winning hit in the 10th and has been the losing pitcher in the last two games. Miguel Castro allowed doubles to the only two batters he faced on Friday and allowed the Braves to inch closer in their comeback.
Atlanta’s Matt Olson was 2-for-4 with a double and a home run on Friday. Orlando Arcia had two more hits and increased his batting average to .458.
Arizona’s Eugenio Suarez has been effective at the plate. He was 2-for-4 and has hit safely in six of his first eight games. Suarez is batting .355 (11-for-31) with seven RBIs, including five multi-hit games.
The Diamondbacks reinstated outfielder Randal Grichuk from the 10-day injured list on Friday, but he did not play. They sent Jorge Barrosa to Triple-A Reno. Shortstop Geraldo Perdomo remains day-to-day with right knee discomfort and was replaced in the lineup Friday by Jace Peterson.
–Field Level Media
