With Framber Valdez on top of his game, the Astros didn’t need to do much offensively to beat the Rangers. On Thursday night, in a 5-1 victory, the young left-hander shone again to keep his hegemony against the Rangers, a team he’s treated the rough way since 2020.
Valdez –who retired nine straight hitters after a Jonah Heim single in the first— pitched seven innings of six-hit, one-run ball to get his third W of the campaign (3-2). He gave up two walks, struck out seven opponents, and lowered his ERA from 2.93 to 2.68. Speaking of ERAs, Valdez’s is at 1.