Max Fried Cannot Lead New York Yankees To Success In Game 3

Max Fried was not able to pitch better than journeyman Jason Alexander. Max Fried only pitched five innings in this 7-1 loss. This was disappointing. Max Fried is not pitching like he did at the beginning of the season. He has become a poor pitcher.

Meanwhile, the Yankees made Alexander look like Cy Young. This was a golden opportunity for the Yankees. Instead, they dropped two out of three to the Astros, and they failed to turn their season around. They rely on Max Fried to be an ace. If there was ever a time when he should have been, it was this game. Do you think the Yankees have much of a chance to make the playoffs now?

Lineup Summary

The Astros had Jeremy Pena as the shortstop, batting leadoff. Carlos Correa was the third baseman, batting second. Jose Altuve was the designated hitter, batting third. Christian Walker was the first baseman, batting fourth. Victor Caratini was the catcher and batted fifth. Jesús Sánchez was the center fielder and batted sixth. He was replaced defensively by Taylor Trammell in the eighth inning.

Ramon Urias pinch-hit for him in the ninth inning. He stayed in to play second base. Cam Smith was the right fielder who batted seventh. Mauricio Dubon was the second baseman and batted eighth. He moved to left field in the ninth inning. Chas McCormick was the center fielder and batted ninth.

For the Yankees, Trent Grisham batted first and was the center fielder. Ben Rice was the first baseman and batted second. Aaron Judge was the designated hitter and batted third. Cody Bellinger was the right fielder who batted fourth.  He moved to left field in the eighth inning. Jazz Chisholm Jr. was the second baseman who batted fifth.

Jasson Dominguez was the left fielder and batted sixth. Giancarlo Stanton replaced him in the ninth inning as a pinch-hitter. Stanton stayed in to play right field. Anthony Volpe was the shortstop, batting seventh. Ryan McMahon was the third baseman and batted eighth. Austin Wells was the catcher, batting ninth. 

News and Notes

Max Fried pitched poorly today, but that created a low-leverage opportunity for Devin Williams to come in. The Yankees were losing 4-0, and he came in and struck out all three batters he faced. The Yankees need someone to pitch the sixth inning. It may be Williams.

Stanton was not in the lineup today, though Yankees Manager Aaron Boone thought about putting Stanton in the field today, but he was not in the lineup. Boone said Stanton felt good after his experience in the outfield. Boone got ejected from this game, his fifth of the season.

Game Reaction: Max Fried Disappoints

Yankee Starting Pitcher, Max Fried, only pitched five innings. That is not good enough. Williams, the beleaguered former Yankee closer, was the first pitcher out of the bullpen for the Yankees. He struck out all three batters he faced in the sixth inning. That was a good low-leverage situation for him.

The Yankees got their first hit in the sixth inning. Rice singled and was immediately eliminated on an inning-ending double play off the bat of Judge. Following Williams was Brent Headrick. He threw up a zero as well. He has pitched well for the Yankees. The Yankees loaded the bases with one out in the seventh inning. They only managed to score one run. Altuve was on base four times in this game.

Scoring Summary

In the first inning, Altuve hit a solo home run. The Astros lead 1-0. Altuve kills the Yankees. In the third inning, Walker singled, and Altuve scored. It was 2-0 Astros. In the fifth inning, Smith hit a two-run double with the bases loaded. Correa and Walker both scored. It was 4-0 Astros. In the seventh inning, Chisholm Jr. scored on a McMahon sacrifice fly. It was 4-1 Astros.

In the ninth inning, Correa hit a solo home run. It was 5-1 Astros. Then, Urias singled on a pop-fly to Bellinger. Bellinger had the ball slip out of his hand, and Altuve scored. That made it 6-1 Astros. Then, Dubon singled and Walker scored. It was 7-1 Astros.

Final Thoughts

Max Fried pitched only five innings today. That type of output from your ace is poor. The Yankees needed more innings than that from their purported ace. With only five innings pitched, the Yankees’ bullpen will get even more taxed than it is. Next, the Yankees host the Minnesota Twins for three games, all of which begin at 7:05.