Astros’ trade deadline gamble is backfiring badly with Framber Valdez off his game

Houston Astros starting pitcher Framber Valdez picked a bad time to record his two worst performances of the 2025 season. Not only did Valdez's last two outings result in Astros' losses, but he's also hurting his stock heading into free agency this coming offseason.

The Astros had an opportunity to upgrade the starting rotation at the trade deadline, and passed. Houston was rumored to be targeting many starters — including Padres right-hander Dylan Cease — nothing ever materialized and the Astros turned their focus toward the lineup instead.

Astros GM Dana Brown felt as though the prices attached to starting pitchers were far too steep, and furthermore, Houston had numerous injured starters slated to return to the rotation during the second-half of the season. Forgoing such an upgrade, however, may completely backfire if Valdez continues to struggle.

Astros missed out on Dylan Cease at the trade deadline and now they are paying for it during Framber Valdez's struggles

After putting up six innings of one-run ball against the Washington Nationals on July 28, Valdez was rocked by the Red Sox at Fenway Park last week. The Astros left-hander allowed six runs (five of them earned) on seven hits and struck out just three Red Sox hitters.

Things were equally as bad over the weekend when the Astros lost to the New York Yankees by a final score of 5-4 with Valdez on the bump. The Bronx Bombers tattooed Valdez for eight runs and plated four runs. The Houston starter logged just one punch out against the Yankees and allowed four free passes.

This is not the same Framber Valdez that was racking up Ks and mowing down the competition earlier this season, and fans might begin to wonder whether or not Brown did enough at the MLB trade deadline to counteract the lefty's sudden struggles.

Not only has Valdez been giving up runs, but there've been some hard-hit balls over his last two appearances. Valdez allowed a dozen hard-hit balls on Saturday to the Yankees, and it wasn't just the likes of Aaron Judge and Cody Bellinger taking healthy hacks against the Houston starter. The aging Paul Goldschmidt smacked two balls that came off the bat at over 105 mph. Trent Grisham also squared Valdez up twice as well.

Valdez had 22 swings and misses during that July 28 start against the Nats, but just nine against the Red Sox last week and only five against the Yankees on Saturday. Something's off with the Astros' left-hander, and it could become problematic if Houston's caoching staff fails to address it quickly.

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