Max Fried put on the pinstripes for the first time on Wednesday at his introductory press conference, and he made it clear that it carries a different feel when wearing the interlocking NY on his chest.
“Being a baseball fan, you know what it means, you just know the standard, that the Yankees hold,” Fried said. “Putting on the pinstripes, there’s a certain responsibility and expectation that comes with that. I’m extremely excited to take that on.
“I was walking through the clubhouse, and there’s three words that were put up on the wall, and it’s ‘Prepare, compete, and win.’ I thought a lot about that. To me, as a competitor and as a player, it really resonated with me...before I take the ball, I’m gonna prepare as best as I possibly can, when I get out there, I’m gonna leave it all out there and compete to the best of my ability, and at the end of the day, the one thing we’re out here to do is win.”
Fried has experienced the biggest stage, as he tossed six shutout innings in game six of the World Series in Houston to clinch a title for the Braves, and now, he wants to experience that under the bright lights of the Bronx.
“For me,” Fried said. “I couldn’t be more excited to be here as a part of this organization and as a part of the Yankees.”
With that excitement comes anticipation and expectation from the fanbase, and Fried, who has extensive postseason experience, feels more than ready to show he has the makeup to shine in October in New York, where he feels the pressure of winning being the only acceptable outcome.
For Fried, that is a major reason why he is now wearing the pinstripes.
“Winning is a big priority,” Fried said. “At the end of the day, the Yankees come to spring training every year with the goal to win a World Series...if I was gonna make a potentially long commitment, I wanted to be able to be in a place where I knew I was gonna be able to win year in and year out. I love playoff baseball. I love to have meaningful baseball at the end of the year. The Yankees are an organization that are going to do that year in and year out.”