Max Fried Must Save the Yankees Season Tonight!

Craig Carton (0:00)

We have six hours till first pitch, and the New York Yankees season comes down to the left arm of Max Fried, the guy the Yankees went to when Juan Sota decided to play for the Mets. And they said, we're going to go get the best lefty in the game. We're going to go to a guy who's a big money, big game pitcher. And now, he has an opportunity to bury the ghost of a year ago, when he did not fulfill his prophecy as a great primetime, postseason pitcher and salvage and save the Yankee season. Good afternoon, Big Mac. How are you today, kid? I'm doing well.

Chris McMonigle (0:38)

I'm feeling refreshed.

Craig Carton (0:39)

I'm here.

Chris McMonigle (0:40)

I'm here where I love to be.

Craig Carton (0:41)

Yes.

Chris McMonigle (0:42)

And you're right. Look, forget all that. Forget when they signed him, why they signed him. Forget what he did in Atlanta. Forget what he did last year. This is Max Fried, one of the three aces that this team has been built on. And he has an opportunity to go out tonight and save the Yankee season and hopefully make it that pivotal game you mentioned, because if they don't win, it ain't that pivotal.

Craig Carton (1:01)

It's a wrap. This is a legacy game for Max Fried.

Chris McMonigle (1:03)

This is a big game for Max Fried. Obviously a big game for the Yankees. This series isn't over. I know it feels like that. Even I, the most pie in the sky Yankee shell, even I after game two, went through a long period of feeling like, well, what's the point? And the point is this series isn't over. They won two games in their building. Return serve. It starts with tonight. We have seen crazier things happen in a short series. Momentum can change extremely quickly. If he shuts the rays down, the Yankees' bats waken up. They have a convincing victory. We're all going to feel better, although we would be facing, obviously, Rasmussen in game four, I'm assuming, if the Yankees win tonight. You would feel better about this team moving forward. Enough of complaining about what happened the other night. It doesn't matter. We'll get into the changes we think need to be made. The Yankees need to play better. Max Fried needs to pitch them deep into this game and be as successful as he's ever been in a Yankee uniform. If they do that, they get a victory. Tomorrow, we feel different about it.

Craig Carton (1:56)

By the way, it's not like the Tampa Offense has done anything.

Chris McMonigle (1:58)

No.

Craig Carton (1:59)

Because they had one run in game one and three of their five runs in game two were unearned. The Yankees' defense gave them runs.

Chris McMonigle (2:07)

No, I know. Listen, it's what they do. I'm not trying to knock you out.

Craig Carton (2:10)

They're not hitting the snot out of the wall.

Chris McMonigle (2:12)

They have a solo home run in game one, as you mentioned.

Three of the runs, one is an error in the first inning, and then it's on little ground balls. I know that's what they do, and hey, scoring runs is scoring runs, but it's on little ground balls. It's on...

Craig Carton (2:25)

The Garcia drop at first.

Chris McMonigle (2:27)

The Garcia drop at first extends it so they get a base hit. That's really the only hit with running the scoring position pretty much this entire series for them. In fact, this entire series for them is that one base hit from Palacios.

Craig Carton (2:37)

And it's the Yankees three, four, five, six, and seven hitters who were for two games into the series.

Chris McMonigle (2:43)

We all know what needs to change.

Craig Carton (2:46)

I feel pretty confident. I don't know why. I feel like Max Fried is going to be a big money pitcher. I know last year he wasn't against Toronto, but I do think that he's going to step up to the mound tonight. I think he's going to give you a solid, legitimate ace type of start. Obviously, he's got his mind also on a hospital room not today as he awaits the birth of his first child with his longtime girlfriend. But I can tell you something else. We just watched last night Mason Miller not eligible to play on paternity leave as he and his wife had a healthy baby.

They win that game, they didn't need him apparently, because the guy that filled in for my guess got a five or six out save.

Chris McMonigle (3:24)

Yeah, King.