29 articles
HOU •
about 2 months ago
The 31-year-old southpaw scattered seven hits on the night while issuing a pair of free passes. The lone tally against him came on a solo shot off the bat of rookie sensation Nick Kurtz in the sixth inning. Valdez generated 17 swings and misses on 92 pitches on the afternoon — 13 on his curveball — while posting an elite CSW of 36 percent. He likely concludes his regular season with a 13-11 record, 3.66 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and a 187/68 K/BB ratio over 192 innings in his 31 starts.
HOU •
about 2 months ago
He gave up the seven hardest-hit balls of the game, ranging from 105.6 to 110.9 mph, and also walked four. Valdez was 11-4 with a 2.62 ERA through four months this season. Now, having given up 41 runs — 38 earned — in 51 innings since the beginning of August, he’s 12-11 with a 3.75 ERA. It’s maybe the biggest reason the Astros might miss out on the playoffs. Valdez figures to face the A’s on Thursday.
HOU •
2 months ago
Valdez has been so erratic in recent weeks that it’s hard to believe it’s not October. Today, he gave up a homer to Matt Olson in the first. The run on the second came when Mauricio Dubón botched a potential double-play ball after a soft single and a walk. After that, things were quiet until the fifth, when Valdez opened the inning by walking three in a row and giving up two singles. Fortunately for Valdez, Enyel De Los Santos stranded both runners he inherited by striking out Marcell Ozuna, Sandy León and Nacho Alvarez Jr. The loss leaves Valdez 12-10 with a 3.59 ERA. He’s 1-6 with a 6.27 ERA since the beginning of August. The plan is for him to face the Mariners next weekend.
HOU •
2 months ago
Jake Burger’s homer was the big blow. Valdez struck out the first two batters in the sixth, but he then allowed his third, fourth and fifth hits of the game, with the last being a 364-foot round-tripper. Since the first run of the game was unearned, this goes down as Valdez’s 19th quality start in 28 tries. He’ll head to Atlanta with a 12-9 record and a 3.42 ERA.
HOU •
3 months ago
Valdez gave up a two-run homer to Jazz Chisholm in the second inning. After loading the bases with two outs in the fifth, Trent Grisham took Valdez deep for a grand slam, making it a 6-0 game. Valdez would finish out the fifth and was done for the day at 96 pitches. He collected eight strikeouts. The 31-year-old left-hander will take a 3.40 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, and a 166/57 K/BB ratio across 169 1/3 innings into a start against the Blue Jays in Toronto next Tuesday.
HOU •
3 months ago
Valdez allowed only three hits, and he compensated for two walks with five strikeouts. It’s a nice bounceback from his struggles last week against the Tigers (five innings, seven runs), and while some of that can be attributed to the Rockies being much worse than the Tigers, it’s not always that simple. Valdez now has a 3.18 ERA in 2025 with a 12-7 record. Not too shabby. He faces off against the Yankees on Tuesday.
HOU •
3 months ago
Valdez barely escaped a first inning that included three hits, three walks and two run-scoring wild pitches, but he bounced back nicely from the six-run frame and kept the Astros from burning out their pen ahead of a four-game series against the Orioles that starts tomorrow. It’s odd just how many awful innings Valdez has had in recent starts, but they don’t really seem to carry over once he finally gets that third out. He’s now 0-3 with a 7.33 ERA in four starts this month, but he has the perfect opportunity to rebound next week at home against the Rockies.
HOU •
3 months ago
Valdez just didn’t have it here. Both his curveball and changeup faded on him as he struggled to get on top of them and in turn, put hitters away. Instead he had to go back to his sinker, which he struggled to command as well, and wound up allowing 11 hard-hit balls in total. He was still able to work into the seventh inning and maintain a relatively clean line though. With that, he’s heading to Detroit for a matchup with the Tigers next time out.
HOU •
3 months ago
Valdez started the game off with two singles and two walks, producing a run before the first out was recorded. He went on to strand two of the remaining three runners, and he got through the next three innings unscathed before giving up two more runs in the fifth. Really, things could have been worse today, considering he allowed eight hits, walked four and struck out just one. This makes two straight shaky outings from a pitcher who was about as good as anyone in the league from May through July. Hopefully, it’s not a sign of things to come. He’ll face the Orioles next week.
HOU •
4 months ago
Framber struck out three and walked one while posting an 18 percent whiff rate and 26 percent CSW. He wasn’t hit hard by any means, but the Red Sox are one of the best lineups in baseball against left-handed pitching, and they were able to make consistent contact. Valdez will hope for better results next weekend against a Yankees lineup that could have Aaron Judge back.
HOU •
4 months ago
Valdez kept his personal 10-game winning streak intact, but the Astros lost one of his starts for the first time since May 2. That wasn’t Valdez’s fault, of course. He matched his season high with 12 strikeouts, and he allowed one run or fewer for the 11th time in his 21 starts. He’ll next start in Boston on Sunday.
HOU •
4 months ago
Valdez tossed four scoreless innings before a double, base hit, and a groundout put the Diamondbacks on the board with a run in the fifth. He settled in for two more scoreless frames, scattering seven total hits while striking out four batters. The 31-year-old left-hander will take a 2.67 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, and a 129/42 K/BB ratio across 128 innings into a start against the Athletics in Houston on Sunday.
HOU •
4 months ago
Valdez looked like he was going to pick up a win in his final start before the All-Star break, but Josh Hader blew a save to prevent that from happening. It was still an outstanding effort from the 31-year-old; one that lowered his ERA to 2.75 over 121 innings of work. Valdez was snubbed from the All-Star game, but he’ll be back on the mound next weekend against the Mariners.
HOU •
5 months ago
Valdez gave up a solo homer in the first, another run in the second and then a two-run homer in the fourth, but he held the line from there and moved into a tie for the major league lead with 10 wins this season. That’s quite an accomplishment, given that he was 1-4 through seven starts. He’s 9-0 in his last 11 outings. Valdez will finish off the first half Friday against the Rangers.
HOU •
5 months ago
Valdez was outstanding against the Cubs on Sunday, holding them scoreless over six frames. He started the seventh giving up a double and a base hit before he was relieved by Bryan Abreu, who left both runners stranded. Valdez scattered five hits and two walks, striking out six. The 31-year-old left-hander will take a 2.72 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, and a 108/39 K/BB ratio across 109 innings into a start against the Dodgers in Los Angeles on Saturday.
HOU •
5 months ago
Valdez walked four batters in the ballgame while striking out three. He and Phillies’ left-hander Ranger Suárez traded zeroes through each of the first seven frames, which is why the 31-year-old southpaw came up empty-handed despite his brilliant effort. He got just three whiffs on 92 pitches on the night, registering a CSW of 24 percent. Through 16 starts on the season, Valdez has compiled a terrific 2.88 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and a 102/37 K/BB ratio across 103 innings. He’ll do battle against the Cubs his next time out at home on Sunday.
HOU •
5 months ago
Valdez, 31, dealt his fair share of traffic but was able to keep that traffic from crossing the plate. He walked five in the contest, and he allowed five hits while striking out three in a start that could have gone so much worse. He’s now the proud owner of a 3.09 ERA in 2025 with a K/BB ratio of 99/33 across 96 innings. Valdez will look to be a a little more efficient with similar results against the Phillies on Tuesday.
HOU •
5 months ago
Valdez surrendered two runs on seven hits and a walk in the ballgame. Piling up strikeouts led to an increased pitch count though, which is why he was pulled after just five frames at 95 pitches. Edgar Quero did all of the damage against him with a pair of RBI singles after Miguel Vargas extra-base hits in the third and fifth innings. The 31-year-old left-hander got 20 whiffs on the night — 12 of them on his curveball — while posting an elite CSW of 36 percent. He’ll see if he can eclipse double-digit strikeouts in three straight starts when he takes on the Athletics in West Sacramento on Wednesday.
HOU •
6 months ago
The 31-year-old southpaw scattered five hits and three walks on the evening. The Pirates scratched out single runs in the third and fifth innings against him — both driven in by Oneil Cruz — but aside from that they were completely stifled. Valdez got a whopping 23 swings and misses on 99 pitches on the night — 18 of them on his curveball — while posting an elite CSW of 38 percent. He’ll look to carry over this fine performance as he does battle against the White Sox at home on Wednesday.
HOU •
6 months ago
A complete game! And Valdez was fortunate to be credited with one because this game was knotted at one with two outs in the ninth inning before Yainer Diaz hit a walk-off homer. The Astros also scratched across a run in the eighth on a throwing error from Curtis Mead. He did only have 83 pitches to his ledger though, so it’s likely he would’ve come back out for the 10th inning. Funny enough, the only run he allowed was off a lead-off home run by José Caballero. After that, he retired 27 of the 30 hitters he faced for the rest of the game. In classic Valdez fashion, 15 of the 19 balls in play by Rays were on the ground as he threw maybe five total pitches above the belt in this game. All in all, it was a tremendous, old-school start by the talented left-hander. His next start is scheduled to come against the Pirates in Pittsburgh.
HOU •
6 months ago
After a clean first inning, a triple and a groundout put the Mariners on the board with a run in the second. That would be all Seattle to do against Valdez. He settled in for four more scoreless frames, scattering four hits and four walks with five strikeouts. The 31-year-old southpaw will take a 3.39 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, and a 64/23 K/BB ratio across 69 innings into a start against the Rays in Houston on Friday.
HOU •
6 months ago
The left-hander struck out eight and walked just one on the day with a 24 percent whiff rate and 32 percent CSW. All of the damage came in the fourth inning, when Valdez allowed three runs on four hits. Valdez is putting together another solid, if unspectacular, season as the rock of the Houston rotation. He gets a tough start against a surging Mariners offense next week.
HOU •
7 months ago
Eric Haase’s fifth-inning homer accounted for Milwaukee’s lone run today. Valdez struck out seven and walked two in winning for the first time since Opening Day. It’s his fifth quality start in eight tries, but today’s game was the first of those eight in which the Astros totaled more than three runs. Valdez will face the Royals next week.
HOU •
7 months ago
This was not the start Valdez envisioned having against the lowly White Sox. It took him 42 pitches to get through the first two innings where he gave up five hits and two runs in the process. Then it seemed like he was settling in before a two-out rally from the White Sox in the fifth plated two more runs and effectively ended Valdez’s outing. He struggled to spot both his curveball and changeup which made it difficult for him to put hitters away and his sinker velocity was down over a tick. That’s a bit worrisome and should be monitored. His next start is scheduled to come against the Brewers.
HOU •
7 months ago
It’s just the third complete game by a pitcher this season and first that wasn’t a shutout victory (Nathan Eovaldi and Michael King got those). Valdez now has eight career complete games, three of which have been shutouts. That puts him tied for seventh in compete games among active pitchers, and he might rate first or second (Sandy Alcantara has 12) in a few years once the old guard retires. He’ll face the White Sox next, making number nine a realistic possibility.
HOU •
7 months ago
It’s just the third complete game by a pitcher this season and first that wasn’t a shutout victory (Nathan Eovaldi and Michael King got those). Valdez now has eight career complete games, three of which have been shutouts. That puts him tied for seventh in compete games among active pitchers, and he might rate first or second (Sandy Alcantara has 12) in a few years once the old guard retires. He’ll face the White Sox next, making No. 9 a possibility.
HOU •
7 months ago
The 31-year-old southpaw walked three and struck out two on the night. He allowed a run in the opening inning as Fernando Tatis Jr. walked, advanced on a sacrifice and scored on a fielder’s choice. The Padres scratched out another run in the third on an RBI single by Gavin Sheets. Valdez got eight swings and misses on 87 pitches on the night, registering a CSW of 28 percent. He’ll carry an underwhelming 4.50 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and a 26/11 K/BB ratio (28 innings) into Saturday’s tilt against the Royals in Kansas City.
HOU •
7 months ago
Valdez was exceptional against the Mariners last week. He was less-than-spectacular Monday, It’s worth noting that five over the 10 hits he allowed went for extra bases, and he struck out just three while landing 55-of-89 pitches for strikes. Valdez has alternated clunkers with scoreless outings to open 2025, and he’ll hope to do the same after this poor outing against the Padres on Saturday.
HOU •
7 months ago
Valdez was exceptional against the Mariners last week. He was less-than-spectacular Monday, It’s worth noting that five of the 10 hits he allowed went for extra bases, and he struck out just three while landing 55-of-89 pitches for strikes. Valdez has alternated clunkers with scoreless outings to open 2025, and he’ll hope to do the same after this poor outing against the Padres on Saturday.