Braves' Max Fried Suffers Ankle Injury, Exits Start vs. Marlins as Precaution

The Atlanta Braves announced pitcher Max Fried tweaked his ankle during Wednesday's game against the Miami Marlins and was removed as a "precaution."  

The injury occurred while he was trying to field a bunt in the first inning:

Fried allowed solo home runs to Jesus Aguilar and Brian Anderson in the first before coming out of the game, raising his ERA to 2.25 for the season. He entered the day fourth in the majors with a 1.96 ERA while producing a 7-0 record.

The home runs were certainly out of the ordinary for a pitcher who had been dominant in this area:

The 26-year-old had also held opponents to fewer than two runs in seven of his first 10 starts to begin the season.

Though his production makes Fried a top contender for the National League Cy Young Award, the Braves need him to stay healthy in order to contend for a World Series title.

Injuries to the pitching staff have been a major issue for Atlanta this season with 13 different players starting at least one game. Ian Anderson has performed well in a limited stretch, but the 22-year-old is still relatively unproven at this level with just 26.2 major league innings.

Any injury to Fried could create major question marks for the team with just four games remaining in the regular season.

The Braves have already clinched the NL East, which allows them to be more conservative with their ace, but the situation should be closely monitored heading into the postseason.