ATLANTA — The Atlanta Braves have extended a qualifying offer to pitcher Max Fried. The move is a formality with Fried expected to become a free agent.
Major League Baseball set a 5 p.m. Monday deadline for teams to send qualifying offers. This year, the offer is a one-year, $21.5 million deal.
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Fried has until 4 p.m. on Nov. 19 to accept or reject the offer. Between now and the deadline, Fried can talk with other teams to see how they would value him as a free agent before he makes a decision.
It’s assumed though that Fried will elect to become a free agent and look for a multi-year deal with a team, whether it’s with Atlanta or another team.
If the Braves don’t resign him, then they would receive a compensation pick in next year’s MLB Draft.
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Fried spoke briefly about his future with the Braves after their early postseason exit. Channel 2 sports director Zach Klein asked Fried in the Braves locker room what it has meant to wear a Braves uniform.
“To me, it means everything. It’s the organization that traded for me and gave me an opportunity to come to the big leagues and be an established big league player. Everyone from my teammates here to the coaching staff, front office, organization, fans, city. Obviously don’t know what’s going to happen. But I have absolutely, you know, loved every moment of it and hope to have many more,” Fried said.
Atlanta acquired Fried as part of a six-player deal back in Dec. 2014. Three years later, he made his MLB debut on Aug. 8, 2017. The left-hander rose through the rotation with a nasty curveball and became a fixture for the Braves by 2019.
The defining moment of Fried’s career with the Braves came during the 2021 World Series run. Despite getting hit in the ankle early on, Fried pitched lights outs against the Houston Astros in Game 6 to clinch the World Series title.
For career accolades, Fried made the All-Star Game in 2022 and 2024 and won three Gold Glove Awards and a Silver Slugger.
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