Houston Astros left-handed pitcher Framber Valdez was scratched from Monday’s start against the Texas Rangers due to soreness in his left elbow. He has been sent back to Houston to be evaluated by the team doctors.
Framber Valdez is experiencing elbow soreness and will get evaluated by team doctors to determine the severity pic.twitter.com/FB5cjfvFMW
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) April 8, 2024
Valdez, an All-Star pitcher, has been performing well this season, averaging 31.1 FanDuel points through two starts. However, the Astros are concerned about his elbow soreness, especially considering the recent high number of pitching injuries in the league.
Valdez noticed the soreness while playing catch on Sunday, and the pain persisted into Monday. The Astros have not placed him on the injured list yet, which is seen as a positive sign. In Valdez’s absence, Blair Henley will make his MLB debut as the starting pitcher on Monday.
The Astros, who have had a rough start to the season with a record of 3-7, are hoping for a quick recovery for Valdez, as they rely heavily on their pitching rotation. Valdez has been an instrumental player for the Astros and losing him for an extended period of time would be a significant blow to the team.
The Astros have already dealt with multiple pitching injuries this season, including to pitchers such as Justin Verlander and Luis Garcia. Valdez’s injury adds to the growing concerns about the overall health of pitchers in the league.
Both Joe Espada and Dana Brown downplayed any concern over Framber Valdez’s elbow soreness, noting that the team did not put him on the IL. Still, they won’t hear what the doctors say until tomorrow, at the earliest.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) April 8, 2024
The Astros will await the results of Valdez’s evaluation to determine the severity of his injury. They are currently thin in their starting rotation and are relying on other pitchers to step up in Valdez’s absence.
Despite the injury, the Astros are still hopeful of making a playoff run this season, but their pitching injuries pose a challenge to their success. Valdez has been consistent and has made back-to-back All-Star teams in recent years.
Losing him for an extended period of time would be a setback for both him and the team. However, it is important to note that the full extent of Valdez’s injury is not yet known, and he has not been placed on the injured list.
The Astros and their fans anxiously await further updates on Valdez’s condition.
Fans reacted as follows.
They are gonna have to throw DoorDash drivers out there on the mound soon
— Not Jake 🥷🏻 (@CincyHub) April 8, 2024
CAN THESE INJURIES GO AWAY
— Chappie (depressed steelers fan) (@my_chappie) April 8, 2024
These TJ injuries are getting out of control
— Big Baseball Fan23⚾️🏒🐧🏴☠️ (@Baseball4Ever99) April 8, 2024
As much as I am for the Astros failing, I’m not a fan of player injuries. Hope it’s nothing to serious that it requires extensive time off
— Jake Cobb (@realjakecobb) April 8, 2024
I’m gonna keep my mouth shut cause if I say pitch clock I will get attacked.
— The Skippers View (@TheSkippersView) April 8, 2024
Dam another injury in the making
— The Lock$mith (@RipsAndSlips) April 8, 2024
Now a days Injuries are also part of the game . Hope for speedy recovery
— Shah Fahad (@ShahFahad067) April 8, 2024
Let's send positive vibes to Framber Valdez for a speedy recovery! 🙏🏼⚾️ #FramberValdez #GetWellSoon #Baseball #PositiveVibes
— Shah Fahad (@ShahFahad067) April 8, 2024
Need a tacky baseball instead of slick baseball. Pitchers holding ball tighter and causing injuries. Add pitch clock effect and BAM!!
— CinematicAstro 🏆🏆 (@Astro_Cinematic) April 8, 2024
-Rawlings slippery balls and crackdown on sticky substances
-100+ MPH pitches
-Sweepers or big momentary movements
–and the accumulation of muscle fatigue from them
—and the Pitch Clock that prevents the arm from recovering from fatigue when they throwing at maximum effort— shome4ever (@jJ45KSUQ3D128Xc) April 8, 2024
This is so crazy bro… Never had a year like this ever. Everyone is going down
— Casey Still (@caseystengel37) April 8, 2024
Yeah I’m sure it had nothing to do with espada pulling framber 1 out away from being eligible for a win in back to back games.
— Tom Sanchez (@TomSanchoo) April 8, 2024
Elbow soreness to me means VERY bad news. I am not quite to the point where I worry about Tommy John surgery but not far from it
— Erich Eisenach (@erich0811) April 8, 2024
Why not IL him for the roster spot and fresh arm and give his elbow a brief rest even if the tests and imaging comes back clean.
— Jeremy Kaufman (@JeremyIKaufman) April 8, 2024
Because the Astros front office has historically been so forthright about injuries…
— Randy A (@randyamanJD) April 8, 2024
Well as a pitcher who gets his start skipped ..he won't even play for 10 days so there's no need to go on the IL…yet..
— Jimmy 🪣 (@FbarrazaSDTBMIA) April 8, 2024
