Max Fried is out for the foreseeable future with left forearm neuritis. While the Braves placed him on the 15-day injured list Sunday, he’s expected to miss more time than that as he builds up to a throwing routine.
Fried could tell something was off at the MLB All-Star Game, and reported it to the team training staff when he came back from Arlington. Per David O’Brien, “Fried didn’t think it was enough to stop him from pitching. When it lingered Friday, he told team, immediately had MRI. It showed no soft-tissue damage, but nerve irritation.”
The Braves right-hander will address the media after Sunday’s game. In the meantime, though, Alex Anthopoulos has a conundrum. Even before Fried’s injury, the Braves rotation was shorthanded. Mark Bowman explained in a recent newsletter:
“The rotation is one of the game’s strongest. But Spencer Schwellenbach could start to fatigue and there will be a need to monitor the workloads of Chris Sale and Reynaldo López as they attempt to complete their first full season as a starter since 2019,” B
The Braves have a close eye on both Sale and Lopez, the former of which has an extensive injury history and the latter of whom was primarily a reliever the last few years. Schwellenbach is a rookie who should be under a strict innings limit. So, what is Atlanta to do?
A Braves-Tigers trade for Jack Flaherty after Max Fried’s injury
The Braves haven’t been publicly linked to Jack Flaherty except for in mock trade proposals. Flaherty is on an expiring contract and thus very available, even from the AL Wild Card contending Tigers. Detroit would be wise to get rid of an expiring asset, especially one pitching as well as Flaherty. Entering Sunday’s action, Flaherty 3.13 ERA following a win over the Toronto Blue Jays.
There are two issues with any Flaherty trade. The first is that the Tigers may want to extend him, especially given how he’s pitching so far this season. The second is Flaherty’s history. He was traded just last season at the deadline from the Cardinals to the Orioles. In Baltimore, he flat-out stunk, and was moved to the bullpen.
Still, the Braves don’t have a ton of options, and their rotation is barren as currently constructed. Here’s what a trade might look like