MLB’s offseason is here, and fans are ready for baseball’s hot stove league action.
Some big names are among the free agents available to sign with new clubs in the offseason. That includes several top pitchers. According to MLB.com, nine pitchers sported a WAR of 5.0 or better this season who will be free agents or can opt out of their current contracts. One of those hurlers is Atlanta Braves pitcher Max Fried.
The lefty, who turns 31 in January, finished the 2024 campaign with an 11-10 record and a 3.25 earned-run average. He also struck out 166 batters in 174-1/3 innings. He led the National League with two complete games, one of which was a shutout.
Fried on Nov. 19 rejected the Braves' $21.05 million qualifying offer, as expected. That means the team will get a draft pick as compensation if he signs with another team.
BetGeorgia.com has set odds on where the two-time All-Star and three-time Gold Glove winner will pitch next season. These odds are for information purposes only and are not available through licensed sportsbooks in surrounding states. Georgia sports betting is not yet legal, but our site is monitoring what happens in Atlanta and will let you know when sportsbooks like DraftKings and BetMGM become available.
Team | Odds | Percent Chance |
Boston Red Sox | +500 | 16.7% |
Los Angeles Dodgers | +500 | 16.7% |
San Francisco Giants | +600 | 14.3% |
Baltimore Orioles | +700 | 12.5% |
Texas Rangers | +900 | 10.0% |
Chicago Cubs | +1100 | 8.3% |
St. Louis Cardinals | +1100 | 8.3% |
The Field | +650 | 13.3% |
Odds provided by BetGeorgia.com and not available on Georgia betting apps.
Given the number of expected arms available, teams will have plenty of pitchers from which to choose. Baltimore’s Corbin Burnes is expected to command the most money, although he could get challenges from New York Yankee ace Gerrit Cole or Blake Snell from the San Francisco Giants.
That won’t mean Fried won’t land a nice payday himself. He could be the pitcher San Francisco looks to sign if it can't resign Snell to a new deal, and the same goes for Baltimore if the Orioles can’t bring back Burnes. However, our team at BetGeorgia believes the Boston Red Sox or Los Angeles Dodgers are the most likely to land the eight-year veteran.
The Dodgers, winners of the 2024 World Series, are also likely to look for pitchers in the offseason. Shohei Ohtani is expected to pitch next season for LA, but there are several questions about other pitchers currently and their health. That means Fried could get a serious look from the NL West powerhouse.
Fried will draw interest from teams because of his ability to force weak contact from hitters. His average exit velocity on batted balls was 86.3 miles per hour this season. According to BaseballSavant.com, that was tied for the 19th lowest among all qualifying pitchers in 2024. The average velocity for the weakest half of balls hit off Fried was 73.9 MPH, the seventh-best in MLB.
He also tied for 19th overall in average launch angle at 3.2 degrees. That means he gets a lot of batters to hit groundballs. Considering the Red Sox’s Fenway Park had the second-best Park Factor for hitters over the past three seasons, again, according to BaseballSavant.com, the Red Sox might pay a premium for Fried’s services.
Fried also has a personal reason for considering going to Boston. Lucas Giolito, a high school teammate, is currently on the Sox roster.
“We played high school ball together, and we always talked about how cool it would be if we were on the same team in the big leagues - which were legitimate conversations we would have when we were 17,” pitcher Lucas Giolito said on a recent edition of the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast. “So, this is the shot to make it a reality right here.”
USA Today photo by Denis Poroy.
Author
Steve is an accomplished, award-winning reporter with more than 20 years of experience covering gaming, sports, politics and business. He has written for the Associated Press, Reuters, The Louisville Courier Journal, The Center Square and numerous other publications. Based in Louisville, Ky., Steve has covered the expansion of sports betting in the U.S. and other gaming matters.
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