CHICAGO — Max Fried was almost unhittable. Again.
Fried has carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning in three of his past five starts for the Atlanta Braves, and the 30-year-old left-hander retired the first 15 batters he faced in a three-hitter Wednesday night, leading the team to a 9-2 victory over the Chicago Cubs.
“It’s something I pride myself in, on going to deep into games,” Fried said after his second complete game of the season and the sixth of his MLB career. “The nights where you’re efficient, you’re not walking guys and not wasting pitches, it’s more about just putting your foot on the gas pedal and just keep going, rather than thinking about it.”
Adam Duvall, Matt Olson and Marcell Ozuna homered for Atlanta, which had dropped five of its previous six games. The Braves were 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position one night after they went 0-for-14 in those situations in a 10-inning loss in the series opener at Wrigley Field.
Fried (4-2) struggled early in the season, recording a 7.71 ERA through his first four starts, but he has been much better of late.
He struck out six batters while throwing a three-hitter in a 5-0 victory over the Miami Marlins on April 23. He struck out seven while pitching six hitless innings in a no-decision outing against the Seattle Mariners on April 29. He tossed seven more hitless innings in a 4-1 victory over the New York Mets on May 11, when the Braves lost their bid for a combined no-hitter with two outs in the ninth.
After a shaky outing against the San Diego Padres last Friday, he turned in another gem against the Cubs.
“Fortunately I get to witness it and be a part of it,” Atlanta catcher Travis d’Arnaud said. “I think him understanding his delivery so well is a big part of it. Being able to put his fastball where he wants to, it opens up every other off-speed pitch I think is the biggest thing.”
Fried, who went 8-1 with a 2.55 ERA in 14 starts for Atlanta last year, struck out nine batters and walked none against the Cubs while throwing 105 pitches, 72 for strikes.
Ian Happ hit a leadoff double in the sixth for Chicago’s first baserunner. Happ and Dansby Swanson singled in the eighth for the Cubs’ other two hits.
Fried is 3-2 with a 1.70 ERA in his past six starts. He has 36 strikeouts and 11 walks in 42 1/3 innings in the solid stretch.
“Personally, I feel like I haven’t been consistent with my mentality of attacking and staying on the attack,” Fried said. “I feel like I’ve just been kind of dancing around the zone a lot. Tonight I wanted to make a point of emphasis to go after hitters, get early contact, and be a little bit more of the aggressor rather than trying to make a perfect pitch on the corners.”
Fried improved to 6-0 with a 1.18 ERA in six career starts against the Cubs. The first win of his MLB career came when he pitched five innings of one-run ball in a 5-1 victory at Wrigley Field on Sept. 3, 2017. He became the 10th pitcher to win each of his first six starts against the Cubs.
“He’s got weapons, man,” Chicago manager Craig Counsell said. “He’s got a bunch of weapons, and you never feel like you’ve got something to sit on, and there was very little in the middle of the plate. … He pitched very, very well.”
Chicago starting pitcher Justin Steele was charged with five runs and six hits in 6 1/3 innings. The left-hander is 0-2 with a 6.53 ERA in four starts since returning from a left hamstring injury.
Steele (0-2) retired his first six batters before Michael Harris II hit a leadoff single in the third. Duvall then connected for his third homer of the year, a 423-foot drive to center.
“Definitely could throw that pitch again and get popped up or something and it shows up a little different in the box score,” Steele said. “But there’s guys that are over there just as good as I am. He did a good job with it.”
The Braves broke it open with six runs in the seventh. Ozuna hit a three-run shot off Jose Cuas with two out, and Olson followed with a drive to right for an 8-1 lead.
Ozuna’s 15th homer on the eighth pitch of his at-bat extended his hitting streak to 15 games. It was Olson’s seventh homer this year. The duo also hit back-to-back homers off Dylan Cease during a 6-5 home loss to San Diego on Monday.
Atlanta had scored a total of 14 runs in its previous six games.
“We get a few of those guys going, I think it will relax everyone else,” manager Brian Snitker said, “and have a chance to, I think, look more like us.”
Right-handers are set to take the mound to start Thursday’s game as the series wraps up, with Atlanta giving the ball to AJ Smith-Shawver (1-0, 4.26 ERA) and the Cubs countering with Ben Brown (1-1, 3.57 ERA).