The Houston Astros were at the top of the league for most of the last few seasons, but they’ve seemingly fallen off as of late. After losing Kyle Tucker in a big offseason trade and Alex Bregman in free agency, the Astros missed out on the postseason.
Houston’s ace, Framber Valdez, is a free agent now, and it seems like he’s bound to leave town. Jim Bowden of The Athletic recently projected Valdez would sign a massive $190 million deal this winter, which would seemingly be outside of the Astros’ price range.
As a result, Chris Landers of FanSided recently predicted Valdez would cut ties with the Astros in favor of a deal with the Baltimore Orioles this offseason.
“The Orioles were desperate to tell anyone who would listen at the GM Meetings that they’re finally ready to spend under new owner David Rubenstein,” Landers wrote. “A frontline starter is the obvious place to start with that newfound money, and Valdez is the sort of workhorse (he’s cleared 175 innings in each of the last four seasons) this injury-plagued rotation so desperately needs. They’ll have plenty of competition, but I think the other pitching-needy teams on the market could have other arms in mind.”
The Orioles have a huge hole in the starting rotation. Their lineup is young and improving, with as much potential as a lot of teams in the American League, but they need a solid pitching staff to compete for the World Series.
Adding Valdez might be too expensive for the Orioles, but there’s a chance that they’re willing to spend more money this offseason than in years past. If the Orioles commit to Valdez, they’d be pushing all their chips in the middle for a postseason run over the next few years.
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