Yankees ‘Being Mindful of Extra Rest Days Here and There’ With Oft-Injured Ace

The New York Yankees know they cannot afford to lose another starting pitcher.

Apr 20, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Max Fried (54) throws a pitch against the Tampa Bay Rays in the first inning at George M. Steinbrenner Field. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The New York Yankees' pitching staff has been decimated by injuries.

Their ace, Gerrit Cole, was lost for the entirety of 2025 during spring training when he had to undergo Tommy John surgery. He was the second pitcher to undergo the procedure after prospect Chase Hampton suffered the same fate.

Reigning American League Rookie of the Year Luis Gil isn’t going to be back in the mix until the summertime because of a bad lat strain suffered during camp.

Clarke Schmidt dealt with rotator cuff tendinitis that kept him sidelined to begin the campaign and has been dealing with soreness on his left side recently, which has led to a shaky start.

Marcus Stroman won’t be returning to the rotation until the end of May, most likely, with knee discomfort. The team designated Carlos Carrasco for assignment recently, creating an opening in the rotation that a few in-house options will be considered for.

With their depth being tested to these lengths, it should come as no surprise that the Yankees are doing everything in their power to ensure that ace Max Fried does not join his teammates on the sidelines.

Their major free agent addition has been dealing thus far this season, making history with his dominant performance on the mound.

He currently leads the MLB with eight starts, six wins, a 1.000 win percentage, 1.05 ERA, 51.2 innings pitched, 208 batters faced and an incredible 381 ERA+.

What Are Yankees Doing To Keep Max Fried Healthy?

New York cannot afford to lose that production from their starting lineup and are taking precautions when necessary to ensure Fried, who has dealt with forearm soreness each of the last two years, remains available to pitch.

“It’s one of those things we’re always mindful of, especially with where our starting pitching is at and how important he is to us,” pitching coach Matt Blake said, via Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. “It’s a combination of, what did those innings look like? What were the pitch counts to get to those spots?”

Fried is on pace to throw 226 innings this year, which would shatter his previous career-high of 185.1 set in 2022.

He is regularly working deep into games, facing 64 batters for a third or fourth time through the lineup, which is tied for the most in baseball with Luis Severino of the Athletics.

However, not all innings are created equally, and the Yankees are taking the necessary measures to keep their star fresh.

“He’s been pretty efficient in a lot of innings, other than the first game when he kind of grinded through it a little bit. We’re being mindful of extra rest days here and there, mindful of the throwing program in between. We’ve done a good job of being objective about what his actual workload looks like, not just on game day but his throwing program, his bullpens,” added Blake.

New York has done a wonderful job helping Fried unlock the potential of his seven-pitch arsenal. Now, they have to find the secret formula to keep him healthy, as his absence would derail the team.

The Yankees are 8-0 when Fried takes the mound, and 13-16 in all other games.

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