Braves Game 2 starter Max Fried says finger is ‘healed and back to normal’

ATLANTA — Of all the storylines in the Phillies’ divisional round showdown with the Braves, none is as intriguing as Max Fried’s finger.

Fried missed his last two regular-season starts for the Braves because of a blister on his left index finger. He threw five innings in a simulated game this week and is lined up to start Monday night in Game 2 in Atlanta.

“It just feels like my finger is healed and back to normal,” Fried said.

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But questions still remain about how much Fried will be able to pitch. The Braves also have him lined up for a potential Game 5, on regular rest, next Saturday in Atlanta.

Fried has dealt with blister issues throughout his career. He said he has tried various home remedies (“pickle juice,” he said), in addition to medical treatment.

Maybe the weather will help. It’s expected to be cooler (in the mid-70s) and dry Monday night.

“For me, when it’s not as hot and humid, my skin doesn’t get as sweaty and soft and be able to kind of rip,” Fried said. “So definitely the cooler environment helps. But it’s one of those things where it just kind of pops up. It wasn’t all that hot in Washington when it happened last.

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“Every start that I’ve had in the big leagues, it’s just something you got to monitor and just kind of pitch through, do the best you can to be the same and just make pitches realistically.”

Fried posted a 2.55 ERA this season but made only 14 starts because of a left forearm strain. The Phillies scored six runs (four earned) against him and knocked him out in the fourth inning of Game 1 of the divisional round last year.