Fried will begin the season with Double-A Mississippi, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reports.
This comes as a surprise after it was reported that the left-hander had been sent to Triple-A Gwinnett in mid-March. Fried struggled with his control both at Double-A and in his major-league debut last year, and repeating the level would seem to be a sign that he's been passed up in the organization's pecking order by younger arms like Mike Soroka and Kolby Allard. If Fried can reduce his walks, though, his spot on the 40-man roster could give him another crack at Atlanta's rotation over the summer.