MLB playoff pitcher power rankings favor Astros' emerging ace

While any sort of power rankings often turn into a popularity contest and tend to make us prisoners of the moment too often, they can provide a decent summation of how teams and players are trending at a given point in time. Any positive mentions bode well for the Houston Astros, especially given that they're battling big markets, fatigue in the public eye, and residual hatred dating back to 2017.

Recently, MLB.com put together a power ranking of starting pitchers on playoff contenders. Despite stiff competition from the best pitchers in baseball right now, the Astros' Framber Valdez got some much deserved love at No. 4 on the list.

People are noticing.

Astros' Framber Valdez finally getting respect he deserve in playoff power rankings

Astros fans are already well aware of what Valdez brings to the table, but it is nice to see national writers give him his due. In addition to nearly adding another no-hitter to his resume in August and being generally awesome for most of the season, Valdez has been particularly strong lately, which allowed Houston to put the AL West out of reach.

Despite a less than optimal final start of the regular season, Valdez has posted a 2.08 ERA and 2.55 FIP with 101 strikeouts in 91 innings of work since the beginning of July. No matter how you slice that, Valdez has pitched like an ace, and has a really strong case as being the best left-handed pitcher in all of baseball. With Valdez locked in as the Astros' Game 1 starter for the Wild Card round, his matchup with Tarik Skubal looks like the best pitching matchup we will see in the first round of the postseason.

In MLB's rankings, Valdez placed behind Skubal, Zack Wheeler, and Chris Sale, which is honestly fair, given how good those guys have been in 2024. However, MLB noted not only Valdez's performance since the All-Star break, but also his extensive experience in the playoffs despite just turning 30 years old this season. Pure stuff, extensive track record, and a history of performing under the brightest of lights? Yep, that sounds like an ace to us.

As good as the Astros are, they are likely only going to be able to go as far as Valdez can carry them, as losing his starts in the postseason would portend disaster. Fortunately, history tells us that when Houston needs him, Valdez is going to step up.

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