With the San Diego Padres looking to grab attention this season by making a lot of noise with their team, one move that they seemed to miss out on is pitcher Framber Valdez, who ended up signing with the Detroit Tigers. As the Padres prepare for Spring Training with the season nearing closer, the latest reporting suggests that they were potentially pursuing Valdez before signing with the Tigers.

According to MLB insider Jon Heyman, Valdez received interest from a bevy of teams around the league, with one of them being San Diego, with the reporter saying they had “late interest.” Other teams in the running for Valdez were the Toronto Blue Jays, the Minnesota Twins, and the Baltimore Orioles.

“For a pitcher with alleged flaws, Framber Valdez sure was popular,” Heyman wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “The Padres showed late interest. The Jays were in, and yes, so were the Twins. The Orioles stayed in. But the Tigers, whose manager AJ Hinch perhaps knew him best, showed they were most interested.”

Last season, Valdez recorded a 3.66 ERA to go along with 187 strikeouts and a 13-11 record with the Houston Astros, with whom he’s been since 2018.

Framber Valdez would’ve been a good fit for the Padres Houston Astros starting pitcher Framber Valdez (59) reacts after a play during the fourth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Daikin Park.© Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

While general manager A.J. Preller is looking to make the Padres pop in the 2026 season, getting Valdez would have made sense in not just boosting their rotation, but adding some variety with a left-handed pitcher, as it’s a right-handed majority.  This would be argued by Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, though there was a discussion on whether the team could afford Valdez, who ended up signing a $115 million deal.

“Whether San Diego can afford Valdez is another matter, though few executives are as creative as A.J. Preller, who could move another salary — Pivetta or Jake Cronenworth, perhaps? — If he is intent on adding Valdez,” Feinsand wrote.

At any rate, San Diego looks to further improve after finishing with a 90-72 record, which put them second in the NL West, with their finish happening in the wild card round of the postseason, where they lost to the Chicago Cubs.