Latest news with #FramberValdez
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Framber Valdez, Yanier Diaz Team Up As Astros Dump Rays
Framber Valdez, Yanier Diaz Team Up As Astros Dump Rays originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The Tampa Bay Rays were feeling pretty good about themselves after Thursday night's 13-3 bashing of the Houston Astros. Well, that good feeling disappeared as Astros left-handed pitcher Framber Valdez threw a nine-inning masterpiece. Advertisement Valdez allowed just one run - a solo home run from Tampa Bay's Jose Caballero in the first inning - and three hits in an 83-pitch outing. Yanier Diaz, Valdez's catcher, also had a major hand in helping the Astros post a 2-1 victory over Tampa Bay at Daikin Park on Friday, May 30. Diaz, with the score tied 1-1 in the top of the ninth, threw out the go-ahead runner at third base, The Associated Press reported. The Rays' Taylor Walls singled with one out in the ninth before Caballero walked. Walls was thrown out trying to steal third base. Valdez then coaxed Yandy Díaz on a groundout to complete his night. Ninth-inning heroics by Houston Astros catcher derails hopes of a Rays win Then, in the bottom half of the ninth, Diaz stroked a pitch off Rays reliever Garrett Cleavinger (0-1) to the opposite field, sending it over the right-field wall for the walk-off win. Advertisement With the victory, the Astros moved past Seattle into sole possession of the American League West Division lead. Valdez (5-4) tied a season high with nine strikeouts in his ninth career complete game and second this season. Down 1-0 in the eighth inning, Jake Meyers hit a leadoff double for the Astros to center field with no outs. Zach Dezenzo's single scored Meyers with Dezenzo reaching second base on a throwing error by second baseman Curtis Mead. Both teams get back at it on Saturday in the third game of this four-game series. Tampa Bay sends right-hander Zack Littell (4-5, 3.97 ERA) out to the mound against Houston lefty Colton Gordon (0-0, 3.52 ERA). This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on May 31, 2025, where it first appeared.
New York Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Astros' Framber Valdez ‘the best I've seen him' in 83-pitch complete game masterpiece
HOUSTON — Framber Valdez can epitomize efficiency. Soft contact supersedes strikeouts for a sinkerballer on the precipice of a payday. This platform year is a showcase for one the sport's pre-eminent southpaws, a seven-month sojourn toward a nine-figure salary. Vintage Valdez is worth every penny a team is willing to pay. History suggests the Houston Astros won't be serious bidders but will settle for savoring the final season from a homegrown success story. Such is routine across their golden era. Advertisement Extending it into another October rests, in part, on Valdez's broad shoulders. Injuries have ravaged Houston's starting rotation to an almost unrecognizable state. Valdez and Hunter Brown are its two constants, calming forces amid so much chaos. Brown's ascension into acehood has captivated the city. Valdez already resided there, a fact this magical Friday helped to accentuate. Games in late May only carry so much cachet, but what unfolded across two hours and two minutes at Daikin Park will resonate for however long Houston survives this season. Valdez authored one of his finest starts as an Astro in what is probably his final season with the team. His batterymate, Yainer Diaz, delivered a walk-off home run to reward him with a win he wholeheartedly deserved. 'I think it's one of my best outings in my career so far,' Valdez said through an interpreter. Valdez fired the game's first pitch at 7:12 p.m. Tampa Bay Rays leadoff man Jose Caballero clubbed the second into the Crawford Boxes for a solo home run. 'He got really pissed off,' manager Joe Espada said. 'His stuff just got better. He said 'They're not going to touch me anymore.'' And so they didn't. Valdez delivered perhaps the most dominant start of his major-league career, toying with Tampa's aggressive lineup across nine incredible innings of a 2-1 win. He struck out nine, surrendered two singles after Caballero's solo shot and operated at a pace and pitch count rarely seen in the modern era. Went the distance.#BuiltForThis x @budweiserusa — Houston Astros (@astros) May 31, 2025 Valdez needed 83 pitches to finish the ninth complete game of his career. No major leaguer had thrown fewer in a nine-inning complete game since Kyle Hendricks required 81 to shut out the St. Louis Cardinals on May 3, 2019. No Astro had thrown a complete game on fewer than 85 pitches since Darryl Kile no-hit the New York Mets on Sept. 8, 1993. Advertisement Valdez has a no-hitter of his own. Last season in Arlington, he came within one out of another. Both he and Espada intimated Friday's start was better, even if four Rays reached base. Valdez harnessed impeccable command of his two-seam fastball. Twenty-four of the 31 he threw were either swung upon or called a strike. Fourteen of the 19 balls Tampa put in play against him were groundouts. Shortstop Jeremy Peña fielded nine of them, including the 6-4-3 double play ball that erased Jonathan Aranda's infield single in the fifth. 'We were very aggressive in attacking the zone,' Diaz said through an interpreter. 'The other team, they get scared when we are right on them with the pitches. I think that's what worked today, is that we were aggressive and attacking the zone pretty effectively today.' Only seven teams entered Friday with a higher swing rate than the Rays. Only seven others — including the Astros — swing at more first pitches than Tampa. Five of Valdez's outs arrived on the first pitch of a plate appearance, and he did not reach a three-ball count until the ninth inning. 'It influenced a lot,' Valdez said of the Rays' aggressiveness. 'We know that's a team that attacks a lot on the first pitch. That's why we're professionals here. We study and have plans of attack.' Tampa's inability to hit left-handed pitching has been a hallmark of its season. Only eight lineups entered Friday with a lower OPS against southpaws than Tampa's. Two of the team's best hitters, Brandon Lowe and Josh Lowe, are left-handed. They sat Friday opposite Valdez. Even starting them may not have mattered. Valdez dominated whomever Tampa sent to the plate. He needed fewer than 10 pitches to finish six of his nine innings. The Rays saw just seven pitches in the sixth, one Caballero completed by watching an 0-2 curveball land inside his strike zone. Advertisement The Rays swung 14 times against Valdez's curveball. Seven were whiffs. Six of Valdez's nine strikeouts concluded upon it. Valdez produced a punchout in every inning but the ninth. Nine-hole hitter Taylor Walls singled, and Caballero worked a four-pitch walk, forcing Espada to activate his bullpen, even if he had no intention of using it. 'That's (Valdez's) game, and he was going to stay out there, and he was going to decide the fate of his own game,' Espada said. Only if cleanup man Junior Caminero came to the plate would Espada reconsider. Valdez and Diaz never allowed him to step on deck. Diaz caught Walls trying to steal third base — just the seventh time in 76 attempts an Astros catcher has thrown out a base stealer. 'That was a huge out for us because it gave my pitcher confidence to concentrate on the hitter and not on the base runners,' Diaz said. Concentration is perhaps Valdez's biggest hurdle. Bad calls, cheap hits or misplays behind him often cause him to lose focus or fall apart. Plays like the one Diaz made motivate him. He fell behind Yandy Díaz 2-0 before Yainer Diaz threw out Walls. After he did, Valdez delivered two pitches. Yandy Díaz grounded the second to Peña, who finished the 27th out of a terrific night. 'This is the best I've seen him,' Espada said.
Reuters
2 days ago
- General
- Reuters
Yainer Diaz slams walk-off homer as Astros edge Rays
May 31 - Yainer Diaz socked an opposite-field, walk-off home run with two outs in the ninth inning to lift the Houston Astros to a 2-1 victory over the visiting Tampa Bay Rays on Friday. Diaz clubbed his seventh home run off Rays' left-handed reliever Garrett Cleavinger (0-1), who struck out the first two batters of the ninth. Diaz drilled a first-pitch slider to right for the victory. Trailing 1-0 entering the bottom of the eighth inning, the Astros rallied to draw even. Jake Meyers opened the frame with a double to left-center field off Rays' reliever Kevin Kelly and scored when Zach Dezenzo followed with an infield single. The grounder was fielded by second baseman Curtis Mead, who attempted a challenging jump throw that eluded first baseman Jonathan Aranda and allowed Meyers to round third base and score the tying run. The Rays grabbed a 1-0 lead on the second pitch of the game when Jose Caballero smacked his second home run of the season 383 feet to left field off Astros left-hander Framber Valdez (5-4). That was the extent of the damage surrendered by Valdez, who retired 12 consecutive batters following the Caballero homer. Aranda opened the fifth with a single, but Valdez erased him by getting Mead to hit into a double play. Valdez then retired the Rays in order in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings. Valdez allowed a one-out single to Taylor Walls in the ninth, who advanced to second base on a wild pitch. After a walk to Caballero, Diaz cut down Walls as he attempted to steal third base. Valdez completed the ninth by getting Yandy Diaz to ground out to short. He allowed one run on three hits, with one walk and nine strikeouts. He threw only 83 pitches. Rays right-hander Ryan Pepiot was brilliant in producing his fifth consecutive quality start. Pepiot faced the minimum through four innings, thanks in large part to a base-running gaffe by Meyers in the bottom of the third. Meyers dumped a single into shallow left field to open that frame, and with one out, broke for second base on a pitch to Mauricio Dubon, who sent a line drive to Caballero in right field. Meyers hesitated a beat as Caballero made the catch and was doubled off first base to end the threat. Pepiot cruised from there, retiring the Astros in order in the fourth and sixth and working around a two-out walk to Cam Smith in the fifth. He set down Isaac Paredes and Jose Altuve to open the seventh but departed when Christian Walker slapped a single to center field. Pepiot allowed two hits and one walk while recording four strikeouts over 6 2/3 scoreless innings. He tossed 93 pitches, 61 for strikes, in his second consecutive scoreless appearance. --Field Level Media
Associated Press
2 days ago
- General
- Associated Press
Yainer Diaz's walkoff home run backs Framber Valez's three-hitter as Astros beat Rays 2-1
HOUSTON (AP) — Yainer Diaz homered with two outs in the ninth inning and Framber Valdez pitched a three-hitter to lead the Houston Astros to a 2-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night. The score was tied 1-1 entering the ninth. Garrett Cleavinger (0-1) struck out Jose Altuve and Christian Walker before Diaz sent a 98 mph sinker into the seats in right field to set off a wild celebration. Valdez (5-4) gave up a homer to Jose Caballero in the first inning and tied a season high with nine strikeouts in his ninth career complete game and second this season. Houston trailed 1-0 when Jake Meyers doubled to center field with no outs in the eighth inning and scored on Zach Dezenzo's single on a grounder. Dezenzo moved to second on a throwing error by second baseman Curtis Mead on the play. Caballero homered on Valdez's second pitch to give the Rays an early lead. The homer was just his second this season and the first since April 9. Rays starter Ryan Pepiot allowed two hits in 6 2/3 scoreless innings in his second strong start after he threw seven scoreless innings in his last start. Valdez retired 12 straight before Jonathan Aranda singled on a chopper to first base to start the fifth. Valdez got right back on track, striking out Danny Jansen before Mead grounded into a double play to end the inning. Valdez sailed through the sixth, seventh and eighth innings, sitting down nine straight batters with three strikeouts. Taylor Walls singled with one out in the ninth before Caballero walked. Walls was caught stealing third and Valdez retired Yandy Díaz on a groundout to complete his night. Walker singled with two outs in the seventh to chase Pepiot. Kevin Kelly took over and was greeted with a single by Diaz. The Astros came away empty when Kelly struck out Cam Smith. Key moment The home run by Diaz allowed Houston to rally after losing the series opener 13-3. Key stat Valdez needed just 83 pitches to complete the game. Up next Rays RHP Zack Littell (4-5, 3.97 ERA) opposes Astros LHP Colton Gordon (0-0, 3.52) on Saturday. ___ AP MLB:
NBC Sports
3 days ago
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Rays at Astros prediction: Odds, expert picks, starting pitchers, betting trends, and stats for May 30
Its Friday, May 30 and the Rays (29-27) are in Houston to take on the Astros (30-26). Ryan Pepiot is slated to take the mound for Tampa Bay against Framber Valdez for Houston. The series opened last night with the Rays ripping the Astros 13-3. Junior Caminero went 3-6 including a home run and a double and drove in a season-high six runs to lead the assault against seven Houston hurlers. Lets dive into tonight's matchup and find a sweat or two. We've got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch tipoff, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts. Follow Rotoworld Player News for the latest fantasy and betting player news and analysis all season long. Game details & how to watch Rays at Astros Date: Friday, May 30, 2025 Time: 8:10PM EST Site: Minute Maid Park City: Houston, TX Network/Streaming: FDSNSUN, SCHN Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out. Odds for the Rays at the Astros The latest odds as of Friday: Moneyline: Rays (+139), Astros (-165) Spread: Astros -1.5 Total: 7.0 runs Probable starting pitchers for Rays at Astros Pitching matchup for May 30, 2025: Ryan Pepiot vs. Framber Valdez Rays: Ryan Pepiot (3-5, 3.55 ERA) Last outing: 5/25 vs. Toronto - 7IP, 0ER, 3H, 1BB, 5KsAstros: Framber Valdez (4-4, 3.39 ERA) Last outing: 5/24 vs. Seattle - 6IP, 1ER, 4H, 4BB, 5Ks Rays: Ryan Pepiot (3-5, 3.55 ERA) Last outing: 5/25 vs. Toronto - 7IP, 0ER, 3H, 1BB, 5Ks Astros: Framber Valdez (4-4, 3.39 ERA) Last outing: 5/24 vs. Seattle - 6IP, 1ER, 4H, 4BB, 5Ks Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type! Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Rays at Astros The Astros have won their last 4 games with Framber Valdez as the starting pitcher The Astros' last 3 home games with Framber Valdez as their starting pitcher have gone under the Total The Rays have covered in 4 of their last 5 games showing a profit of 3.33 units Rookie Cam Smith is riding a 7-game hitting streak (11-27) Jose Altuve has hits in 6 of his last 7 games (13-28) If you're looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports! Expert picks & predictions for tonight's game between the Rays and the Astros Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700. Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts. Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager. Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Friday's game between the Rays and the Astros: Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Houston Astros on the Moneyline. Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Houston Astros -1.5. Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the over on the Game Total of 7.0. Want even more MLB best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert MLB Predictions page from NBC Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff: Jay Croucher (@croucherJD) Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper) Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports) Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas)
