The New York Yankees finally answered their critics Wednesday, landing ace pitcher Max Fried with a record-shattering $218 million deal that gives baseball’s most storied franchise its first Jewish superstar since Ron Blomberg.

The 30-year-old pitcher’s arrival in the Bronx comes after eight dominant seasons with the Atlanta Braves, where he posted a sterling 3.07 ERA across 151 starts while collecting three Gold Gloves, a Silver Slugger award, and a World Series ring. His $218 million payday shatters records for both Jewish players and left-handed pitchers, eclipsing David Price’s previous mark of $217 million set in 2015. His eight year contract also passes the $765 million deal that crosstown rival NY Mets gave outfielder Juan Soto on Wednesday.

The Yankees are betting big that Fried’s consistent excellence, including a runner-up finish in the 2022 NL Cy Young race and an impressive 2024 campaign featuring 166 strikeouts over 174.1 innings, to help right their ship after a turbulent season last year. It gives New York a legitimate ace to anchor their rotation while adding some much-needed star power following Soto’s departure.

According to FanGraphs, what makes Fried particularly intriguing is how he disrupts batting timing. He’s among the best  in baseball when it comes to batters getting their fastest swings off against him, with just 19% of swings qualifying as “fast” among pitchers who faced 500 or more swings.

For baseball’s Jewish community, Fried’s historic contract dwarfs the previous record held by Alex Bregman’s $100 million extension with Houston in 2019. He joins a select Yankees fraternity that includes reliever Scott Effross and rising prospect Eric Reyzelman, forming what could be the most prominent Jewish presence in the franchise’s storied history.