Plans for a pair of aces are on hold with Gerrit Cole out for the 2025 season before it began, pushing Max Fried to the front of the New York Yankees' rotation.
Fried, 31, has known Cole since they met on a recruiting visit to UCLA and recently signed as a free agent to team up with the right-hander in pinstripes. With Cole set to have season-ending Tommy John surgery, the spotlight now shifts to Fried.
"At the end of the day, no one is Gerrit Cole, right?" Fried said. "I've got to take the ball every time that I take the ball.