Yankees may delay Max Fried’s next start as rotation plan remains in flux originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

Max Fried seems to be optimistic he can avoid the injured list, but the New York Yankees’ All-Star ace still need extra time to heal. The blister on his left index finger has improved, Fried told reporters at the All-Star Game media availability. 

He won’t pitch in the All-Star Game, and the Yankees haven’t yet locked in his spot in the second-half rotation, but the hope is that extra rest with the All-Star Break will be enough to keep him off the injured list.

“It’s getting better, definitely down,” Fried told the New York Post at All-Star media availability. “We’re going to see if we can maximize the time during the break here. … We’re going to take it day by day.”

The blister appeared in the early innings of his final outing before the break. He said it did not get worse, which is a good sign. Even so, it’s a concerning development for a Yankees staff already missing Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt, still waiting on Luis Gil and relying on Fried, Carlos Rodon, two rookies and Marcus Stroman. 

So, the Yankees may try to push Fried back to the end of the rotation to give him more time to heal, which would be another sacrifice for the lefty. He already gave up the chance to start Tuesday night’s All-Star Game, now he may not get the homecoming from Braves fans he hoped. The Yankees open the second half in Atlanta. 

While it would be a nice full-circle moment for Fried to pitch this weekend in Atlanta, where he spent the first seven years of his career and helped the Braves win a World Series, the Yankees could leading the AL East standings, Aaron Boone  may prefer to line up Fried for the more meaningful division matchup.

Considering the concern when Fried left after getting hit around in just three innings on Saturday, this is a good problem for the Yankees to be facing. 

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 15, 2025, where it first appeared.