After being scratched from his start on Monday due to elbow inflammation, Houston Astros starter Framber Valdez was moved to the 15-day injured list on Tuesday.
While speaking to reporters before Tuesday's game against the Kansas City Royals, manager Joe Espada announced that the left-hander would be placed on the IL with elbow inflammation. Espada added that Valdez won't throw for a couple of days before being reevaluated.
“He’s going to need some time to recover,” Espada said. “We'll watch the inflammation to see how quickly that comes down. Hopefully it could just be maybe two starts and we’ll get him back on the mound.”
Valdez returned to Houston for testing after missing his start.
The 30-year-old had made two starts this season, pitching to a 2.19 ERA over 12.1 innings. Valdez has been named an All-Star in both of the past two seasons and finished ninth in Cy Young voting in 2023.
“I didn’t get any news on the ligament, just inflammation in that elbow,” added Espada. “We’ll see where he’s at in a day or two. We can get him back throwing and then we can assess how quickly we can get him back going. I think that's pretty decent news.”
The Astros have been hit hard by injuries to their starting pitching to open the season. Justin Verlander, Luis Garcia, Jose Urquidy, Lance McCullers Jr. and Shawn Dubin were all already placed on the IL this season.
There has been a rash of starting pitchers dealing with elbow injuries so far this season, with players like Cleveland Guardians ace Shane Bieber and Miami Marlins pitcher Eury Perez having to undergo Tommy John surgery. Atlanta Braves ace Spencer Strider was placed on the 10-day IL with elbow soreness on Sunday.
— With files from The Associated Press
