Max Fried’s Next Step Could Determine How the Yankees Handle His Return

The Yankees got the kind of update they needed Saturday. Max Fried is throwing again, and for the first time since he hit the injured list there’s a real schedule attached to his name.

Fried landed on the 15-day IL on May 16 with a left elbow bone bruise, retroactive to May 14. Since then the team has been careful, almost too careful, with how they’ve handled his recovery. But now they have a plan.

According to Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News, manager Aaron Boone laid out what’s next. Fried will throw 35 pitches over two simulated innings on Sunday. If that goes well, he could throw around 40-something pitches in another live session next Friday. After that, a rehab start.

Fried told reporters he felt ‘completely normal’ after his last live bullpen. He’s also been working on some mechanical tweaks, which is worth monitoring once he gets back into real game action.

Pitch count questions and a banged-up rotation

There’s still a few weeks before Fried could actually return. And the Yankees have a decision to make about his pitch count when he’s activated. Do they bring him back on a short leash and rely on the bullpen to cover innings? Or wait until he can give them six or seven frames right away?

That question matters more now because Carlos Rodon is also sidelined with left elbow inflammation. Two lefties down means the rotation is thin. Gerrit Cole is still Gerrit Cole but beyond him things get shaky fast.

New York entered Saturday at 49-38, four games back of Tampa Bay in the AL East. They snapped a seven-game losing streak Friday but the margin for error is small. Every starter matters.

Fried’s throwing progression gives the team something concrete to work with. No more vague timelines. If his arm responds well Sunday and again next Friday, a minor league rehab assignment follows. From there it’s just about building stamina.

The Yankees need this one to go smoothly. Because if Fried comes back and looks like himself, that changes the look of the entire staff. If not, they’re stuck patching together innings until the trade deadline or worse.