Framber Valdez gets velocity boost against Dodgers

Valdez opened with five scoreless innings today to lower his ERA from 4.06 to 3.94, but he gave up three straight singles to start the sixth, with his one out coming because of a baserunning miscue. He was lifted down 1-0, with his ERA sitting at 3.98. However, the remaining runner came around to score off Tyler Kinley, pushing Valdez’s ERA back up to 4.03 to end the year. He also fell to 10-12. The collapse of his strikeout rate this year seems like a bad sign going forward, but at least he did turn back into a very strong groundball pitcher over the last four months. He might be through as a top-20 fantasy starter, but he should still offer some mixed-league value next year.

On the plus side for fantasy managers, he racked up eight strikeouts on the night while issuing four free passes. All of the damage done against him came in the opening inning on a two-out, three-run blast off the bat of Munetaka Murakami. He blanked the White Sox for the rest of his night, but the Tigers were never able to come back. Valdez got 16 swings and misses on 90 offerings — nine on his curveball — while posting an elite CSW of 38 percent. He’ll attempt to finish his season on a high note as he brings a 4.06 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and a 129/64 K/BB ratio (168 2/3 innings) into Wednesday’s battle against the Nationals.

The 32-year-old southpaw struck out two batters on the evening while allowing a pair of walks. The only run that scored against him came as Kevin McGonigle bobbled a ground ball with the bases loaded and two outs in the fifth inning. Otherwise, Valdez was in complete command. He got 10 whiffs on 90 offerings on the night, posting a CSW of 21 percent. He’ll look to continue his recent dominance as he brings a 4.01 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and a 121/60 K/BB ratio (163 innings) into Thursday’s showdown against the White Sox in Chicago.

The 32-year-old left-hander struck out three batters in the contest while allowing only one base on balls. The only real threat against him came in the second inning as the Guardians started with two singles and a sacrifice bunt, putting two runners in scoring position with only one out. He was able to escape trouble there though and didn’t allow another hit the rest of the way. Valdez got just five swings and misses on 94 pitches on the night, registering a CSW of 21 percent. He’ll attempt to replicate this fine outing as he carries a 4.17 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and a 119/58 K/BB ratio (157 2/3 innings) into a premium matchup against the Rockies on Friday.

Valdez gave up eight hits, walked two and struck out none. He fell to 8-9 with the loss. Valdez had recorded at least five strikeouts and picked up the win in three of his last four starts entering play Monday, but he didn’t come close to striking out anyone against the Rays. He threw 84 pitches while the Rays swung 41 times and didn’t whiff even once. Valdez has a 4.35 ERA after the most troubling performance of the worst season of his nine-year career. He’s lined up to face the Dodgers on Sunday.

Montero had been scheduled to start against the Rays on Monday, but he didn’t recover well after his last start so the team wants to give him some extra time to rest and recover. The club will also push Framber Valdez back from Sunday to Monday, with the team going with a bullpen game in Sunday’s series finale against the Royals in Kansas City.

Valdez gave up five hits, walked four and struck out five. He improved to 8-8 on the season. One unearned run scored in the fifth inning on a throwing error by second baseman Hao-Yu Lee. With one on and two outs in the sixth inning, Valdez issued back-to-back walks and a bases-clearing double to Nick Yorke, who also scored after Valdez was removed from the game. Valdez has a 4.35 ERA in what has mostly been a disappointing first season with the Tigers. He’s lined up to face the Royals on the road on Sunday.

It felt like Valdez was turning the corner, but he just can’t get right. In this start, the chaos began early. He walked Steven Kwan to start the game after being ahead of him 1-2. Then, Chase DeLauter singled down 0-2 and he hit José Ramírez with a two-strike curveball just after. Two runs wound up coming around to score in the first. It looked like Valdez had settled in a bit after that before Jo Adell took him deep for a two-run shot in the fifth. It’s just never easy for him. He’ll take a 4.26 ERA into his next scheduled start against the Pirates before facing the Royals afterwards in what should be a favorable two-start week.

The 32-year-old southpaw punched out five batters on the afternoon while issuing a pair of walks. The Mariners did have some traffic on the basepaths behind him, but Valdez got three double plays turned behind him that helped him to evade damage. He got just four swings and misses on 95 pitches on the day, registering a strong CSW of 33 percent. He’ll try to replicate this fine effort as he brings a 4.17 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and a 103/45 K/BB ratio (127 1/3 innings) into Thursday’s critical divisional matchup against the Guardians.

After forging an ugly 7.13 ERA in the month of July, Valdez got August off to a solid start. He did allow nine hits, but he kept the ball in the park — not an easy thing to do on the road against the A’s — and he was able to strike out six. Even with the strong start Valdez still is the owner of a 4.41 ERA, and it’s more than fair to say he’s been a massive disappointment for the Tigers after signing his long-term deal. There’s time to salvage some of the campaign, however, and he’ll get a chance to back this effort up against the Giants in San Francisco on Friday.