If there was ever a time for Framber Valdez to make a solid start, it was Wednesday. Not because of who it was against, or where it was played, but what this meant for him as a player and his personal circumstances.
More often than not, a player’s personal life has no meaning as to what is going on on the field, but this wasn’t the case for Detroit Tigers’ Valdez, as Valdez is coming off a suspension after his last start that ended in a pitch to the Boston Red Sox’s Trevor Story.
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Safe to say, it hasn’t been an ideal 2026 beginning for the Tigers’ biggest acquisition this offseason. However, Valdez looked as strong as ever in his first start since the suspension, which was good for both him and the team.
In the end, his near seven-inning start didn’t lead to a win against the New York Mets after the Tigers dropped an extra-inning showdown, but it wasn’t at the arm of Valdez, for once.
Valdez ended up leaving the game at the bottom of the seventh after recording his seventh strikeout of the night, and Detroit was up one on the Mets.
Valdez on the Year
Tigers starting pitcher Framber Valdez (59) throws a pitch against the Boston Red Sox in the second inning at Comerica Park | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images
This offseason, the Tigers decided to bolster their starting rotation with key additions, which were highlighted by Valdez, who is being paid eight million more this year than Tarik Skubal, so he has to perform, which hasn’t been the case up to this point.
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In the game that led to a suspension, nine hits led to 10 runs scored with a trio of home runs and a pair of hit batters. Talk about a bounce back from a brutal outing.
This year, Valdez has a 4.32 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, and 51 hits in nine starts as opponents have hit nearly .255 against him. Since he has continued to struggle, it is really unfortunate that this strong start against the Mets didn’t lead to a W.
Since the Tigers didn’t win this game, they now drop to 19-24, which ties them for the last-place spot in the worst division in baseball. Something has to give because the team cannot keep its head above water at this pace.
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Skubal just went down after a surgery that sidelined him for at least a month. On top of Skubal’s injury, the team is dealing with both Justin Verlander and Casey Mize being members of the dreaded injured list.
If there is a pitcher that the team cannot afford to struggle it is Valdez. He had his temper tantrum, and that has to be his last.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/tigers/onsi as Tigers’ Framber Valdez Bounces Back with Solid Start After Suspension.