Max Fried struggles with control in spring debut as Yankees beat Panama 11-1

Max Fried pitched three scoreless innings while struggling to command the strike zone and Giancarlo Stanton smashed a laser of a single in their first action of the spring as the Yankees topped WBC-bound Panama 11-1 on Tuesday in Tampa.

Here are the takeaways...

- In the first, Fried fell behind Jose Caballero 2-0 before getting a soft liner to second and jumped ahead of Allen Córdoba 0-2 before walking him with several fastballs well above the zone. None of it mattered as Edmundo Sosa sharply hit a first-pitch sinker below the zone for a 6-4-3 inning-ender. Six of the 11 first-inning offerings were out of the zone as the lefty looked to be getting the rust off.

The Yankee lefty put two men on with one out on a bloop single over second base and a four-pitch walk. But, after falling behind 2-0, Fried got Christian Bethancourt to bounce into a 5-4-3 inning ender. In the second, it was five strikes from 14 pitches, with most missing above the zone. 

Fried won an eight-pitch battle for the first out of the third before losing a nine-pitch duel with Caballero for a two-out walk. But the lefty, after two failed pickoff attempts at first, got Cordoba swinging on a fastball above the zone. Fried’s day lasted four more pitches, as he left a 2-2 count to Sosa in the fifth with Tim Hill entering and getting a lineout.

New York's projected Opening Day starter allowed one hit and three walks in three scoreless innings with 30 strikes on 56 pitches (53.6 percent). The average velocity of his cutter (-1.7 mph), sinker (-1.8), and fastball (-1) were all down from last regular season’s total, and the average spin rates for his curveball (-211), sweeper (-215), and slider (-1232) were all down as well, per Statcast.

- Ryan McMahon, playing short on the afternoon, swung through a pair of balls down near his feet with men on second and third and two down in the first before taking a 1-2 sinker at the knees into left field for a two-run single to put the Yanks up 2-0. 

McMahon cranked a 3-1 single into left (109.6 mph) to put two on and nobody out in the fourth. Panama finally got McMahon when he lined into an unassisted double-play at first on a hot shot (98.5 mph) in the fifth as he went 2-for-3.

His time at shortstop wasn’t perfect as he mishandled a ball up the middle that wasn't particularly hard-hit (85.8 mph) for an error.

- Stanton had two on base when he got his first at-bat of the spring, but swung through a 3-2 slider off the inside corner. He then walloped a 94 mph sinker over the heart of the plate for a screamer of a single (114.3 mph) to start the fourth off righty Erian Rodriguez, the No. 23 prospect in the Cubs' system.

The slugger worked a walk on a 3-2 pitch to start the home half of the fifth and was lifted for a pinch-runner. He finished 1-for-2.

- Jasson Dominguez, batting from the left-side his first trip, took a changeup below the zone for a softly hit single to left to cover the corners and promptly stole second base. Batting as a righty in the third, he was robbed of a hit when his Yankee teammate Caballero made a diving stop on a sharply-struck ball (106.3 mph exit velocity). He bounced out to first, trying to pull a changeup on the outside corner with the bases full to end the fourth. He finished 1-for-3.

- Trent Grisham, batting leadoff and playing center, walked twice in his first three times up. He finished 0-1, leaving at the top of the fifth.

- Ben Rice went down swinging his first at-bat against Panama’s starter, right-hander Jorge Garcia. He walked with the bases loaded and two outs in the fourth to make it 5-0. The first baseman on the day finished 0-for-2, leaving at the top of the fifth.

- JC Escarra bounced a single to right his first time up and added a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded in the fourth. The catcher got a 1-1 fastball up and in and turned on it for a 363-foot two-run homer with two outs in the fifth to make it a 7-0 game in his final time up. He finished 2-for-3.

- Out of the Yankee bullpen: Hill issued a walk and survived a fielding error for a scoreless fourth, adding a strikeout. Ex-Mets prospect Dom Hamel needed 12 pitches for a 1-2-3 fifth and pitched around a leadoff single for a scoreless sixth. Left-hander Brent Headrick struck out a pair swinging in a 14-pitch seventh (10 strikes).

- Caballero finished the day 0-for-2 with a walk for Panama.

- After Jorbit Vivas singled in the bottom of the eighth to make it 11-1, the game ended on a 10-run rule.

What's next

New York heads to Fort Myers to face the Boston Red Sox for a 1:05 first pitch. Righty Luis Gil is set to start against lefty Garrett Crochet.