In 1970, Freed was the International League MVP. Playing for the AAA Rochester Red Wings in the Baltimore Orioles system, Freed hit .334 with a .427 OBP and 24 HRs and 130 RBI. The Phillies thought enough of Freed to trade three players–Jim Hutto, Grant Jackson, Sam Parrilla–to get him from the Orioles. They thought they had a star on their hands. Not so much.
Freed was the Opening Day right fielder for the Phillies in 1971. He went 1-for-4 in his Phillies debut, hitting a triple, scoring a run, and striking out twice. In the Home Opener at brand-new Veterans Stadium on April 10, Freed had 2 hits and an RBI. The next day, Freed had 2 more hits and 5 RBI. And that was about as good as his Phillies career got.
By the end of April, Freed was hitting just .215. But the Phillies stuck with him and he got "hot' in May, hitting in 6 straight games and raising his average to .254. But his offensive struggles continued, and Freed finished the year hitting .221 with just 6 HRs and and 37 RBI in 118 games.
In 1973, Freed hit .225 in a part-time role, getting just 129 at-bats in 73 games. He was back in the minors in 1974, where he hit 30 HRs with 96 RBIs for Oklahoma City, the AA affiliate of the Cleveland Indians.
He made it back to the majors in 1977, where he hit .398 in a very limited role for the St. Louis Cardinals. By 1979, his career was over, and he finished with a .245 average.
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