Houston Astros Star Pitcher Makes Massive Leap in Ace Power Rankings

The Houston Astros have an ace that has cemented himself amongst the best pitchers in baseball.

Feb 26, 2025; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; Houston Astros pitcher Framber Valdez (59) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. | Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

There are a number of question marks that the Houston Astros are going to have to answer during the 2025 season.

The offseason featured some major changes to their roster. Long-time contributors such as third baseman Alex Bregman, right fielder Kyle Tucker, starting pitcher Justin Verlander and relief pitcher Ryan Pressly were all on the move.

2024 trade deadline acquisition Yusei Kikuchi, who was dominant during his Astros tenure, also left in free agency, signing a deal with the Los Angeles Angels.

That is a lot of talent that needs to be replaced, but Houston should remain competitive as there are still more than a few stars on the roster.

Anchoring their pitching staff will be Framber Valdez.

He has turned himself into one of the most reliably productive aces in baseball, which has garnered the attention of Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report.

The MLB writer put together his ace power rankings heading into the 2025 season, selecting the No. 1 starter from each team.

Valdez as the no-brainer selection for the Astros and he made a massive leap up the rankings.

In 2024, he was not ranked among the other aces around the league. This year, Reuter has placed him in the top half of the league at No. 13.

It is a lofty ranking that he has earned with some stellar performances in recent years.

In 2024, he registered a career-high 4.5 WAR across 28 starts, pitching 176.1 innings. He struck out 169 batters and had a tidy 2.91 ERA. His 136 ERA+ was stellar as well.

Availability is the best ability for pitchers and Valdez has certainly lived up to that expectation as the team’s ace. 

Over the last three years, his 575.2 innings pitched are the fifth most in the Major Leagues. He has finished in the top-nine of the Cy Young Award voting each year over that span, with a high of No. 5 in 2022.

2025 is a big year for him as an impending free agent after the season.

If he puts together the kind of performance he has been accustomed to over the last three campaigns, he is going to put himself in a position to cash in on the open market.

For his career, Valdez has a 3.30 ERA across 888.2 innings and 866 strikeouts. He has done a wonderful job of limiting damaging contact, with an elite 62.2% ground ball rate.

Couple that with the elite performance he provided during the team’s run to the World Series in 2022 and some huge offers should be rolling in this winter.