Astros' Framber Valdez Could Be One of Hottest Pitchers in Free Agency

Framber Valdez has been with the Houston Astros his entire career and is on a one year deal worth $18 million.

By the end of this season he will be a free agent for the first time.

Steve Adams with MLB Trade Rumors recently released his Top 10 impending free agents and he ranked Valdez as the No. 4 overall player and the No. 1 pitcher.

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Adams projected Valdez's potential contract to land somewhere in the $150-$180 million dollar range, assuming a five-year deal. If not for his age — Valdez is 32 years old — he would have been looking at a deal in the $200 million range, per Adams.

Framber Valdez's Astros Career

Houston Astros starting pitcher Framber Valdez throws while wearing a white jersey and two-toned hat. — Jul 28, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros starting pitcher Framber Valdez (59) pitches against the Washington Nationals in the first inning at Daikin Park. | Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

The lefty made his debut in August of 2018 and he has been a near picture perfect example of consistency. In his career he has gone 79-46 with a 3.24 ERA entering Saturday's start against the New York Yankees.

Valdez had one outlier of a season in 2019. But other than that he has never had a season without a positive win-loss differential nor an ERA over 3.57.

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He was a two-time American League All-Star in 2022 and 2023, with 2022 being his better season, as he went 17-6 with a 2.82 ERA in 31 starts. That season he crept up on 200 strikeouts while only walking 67.

The Astros went on to win the World Series that season, which was led by a dominating performance by Valdez.

In that postseason he went 3-0 with a 1.44 ERA. in the World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies, he struck out 18 in 12 innings.

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Framber Valdez's 2025 Season

Houston Astros pitcher Framber Valdez throws a ball while wearing an orange jersey with Astros on front. — Jul 22, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Houston Astros pitcher Framber Valdez against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

This year he has contributed toward his future contract in a positive way. Valdez is on track to post one of his best seasons.

The Astros have started him in 22 games this season and he has gone 11-5, including two complete games. He is holding opponents to a career-low batting average of .219.

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Entering Saturday's game he has thrown 140 innings and struck out 144 to 45 walks. His 144 strikeouts is second-best on the team trailing only Hunter Brown, who started Friday's game.

Houston need to make it a priority to figure out how to get Valdez back in an Astros uniform next season. The franchise has struggled at times to keep their own free agents. But, Valdez has been nothing but consistent in Houston's rotation and there will be several teams on him once he becomes a free agent.

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