Aaron Boone reveals why Yankees are confident Max Fried’s IL stay will be a short one

BALTIMORE — Max Fried made just five starts after his return from a left elbow bone bruise before hitting the injured list again Monday with what Aaron Boone called “low-level inflammation as a result of the bone bruise.”

But because the Yankees believe they caught the recurrence of the injury early, they feel confident the left-hander won’t miss nearly as much time as they prepare for the stretch run.

“I was told it was good news and this gives us the best chance to have him healthy the rest of the way,” Boone said before Tuesday’s game at Camden Yards.

Before Fried was placed on the 15-day IL Monday, the Yankees said they were considering having Fried make his scheduled start Wednesday.

Instead, an MRI exam showed inflammation and pitching coach Matt Blake said the organization decided to “err on the side of caution.”

And Boone added it’s “possible” Fried is back in the rotation by the end of the month, when he’s eligible to come off the IL.

He played catch again Tuesday in New York and depending on how the elbow responds, the Yankees will decide how to move forward. Fried could potentially throw off a mound in the coming days.

With Fried sidelined, Carlos Rodón returned Tuesday from his IL stint that was caused by elbow inflammation and Will Warren is set to start Wednesday.

The Yankees are hopeful Max Fried won’t be on the injury list for a long, extended period. Robert Sabo for New York Post

But the Yankees still need to determine why the injury popped up again.

“Any injury can be a precursor for another injury,” Blake said. “I don’t think anyone is shocked this cropped up again. Obviously, we didn’t want it to and we’ll try to mitigate it with workload and delivery management.”

Blake called it “a little frustrating it got to this point,” but added that since he wasn’t forced out of a game — like he was with the initial injury — Fried won’t be out long.

Dr. Spencer Stein, an orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist at NYU Langone, said the recurrence wasn’t unusual and the Yankees’ optimism could indicate a lack of severity of the injury.

When Fried suffered the injury in May, he was immediately shut down from throwing for weeks. That’s not the case this time around.

Initially, Fried said the injury was caused by “hyperextending” and “the banging of the two bones” around the elbow.

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The Yankees hoped some mechanical adjustments might help avoid the issue arising again.

Since it hasn’t, Blake said he was unsure if Fried would have to deal with some kind of discomfort in the area the rest of the season.

“I don’t know,’’ Blake said. “It’s something we have to be aware of and try to stay ahead of. He felt good throwing his side [session] the other day [but] there was too much question about if he went out there [Wednesday], would he make it worse?”

As long as Fried is out, it means the Yankees remain without all five of their top starters at the same time, with Ryan Weathers and Warren remaining in the rotation for now.

The plan is still for Fried — as well as Rodón, Gerrit Cole and Cam Schlittler — to be able to go in the playoffs.

But so far, the Yankees haven’t been able to keep their potentially fearsome rotation together.