Astros left-hander Framber Valdez put on injured list with elbow inflammation
FRAMBER TO THE IL
10 April 2024
FRAMBER TO THE IL
Houston Astros left-hander Framber Valdez was placed on the 15-day injured list Tuesday because of elbow inflammation as manager Joe Espada said he hoped the pitcher will miss only a couple of starts.
“He’s going to need some time to recover,” Espada said before the Astros played Kansas City. “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 was scratched from his scheduled start in the series opener, returned to Houston on Monday night and was diagnosed with inflammation on top of the elbow. The Astros made the IL placement retroactive to Saturday.
“I didn’t get any news on the ligament, just inflammation in that elbow,” Espada said. “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.”
Houston selected the contract of right-hander Wander Suero from Triple-A Sugar Land and recalled left-hander Parker Mushinski from the Space Cowboys. Houston optioned right-hander Blair Henley to Sugar Land and transferred right-hander Oliver Ortega to the 60-day injured list.
Astros prospect Spencer Arrighetti will make his major league debut Wednesday night against the Royals. The rest of the rotation will be pushed back a day.
Joe Espada confirmed that Spencer Arrighetti will make his major-league debut tomorrow. Hunter Brown will pitch Thursday and J.P. France will go Friday. Everyone pushed back a day.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) April 10, 2024
Mauricio Dubón scored the winning run on a wild pitch in the 10th inning, Jeremy Peña and Isaac Paredes opened the game with home runs, and the Houston Astros beat the Los Angeles Angels 3-2 on Friday night.
Peña led off the 10th with a single that advanced automatic runner Dubón to third. Dubón scored when Hunter Strickland, who hadn’t allowed a run in 14 2/3 innings of his first 13 appearances with the Angels, threw a pitch behind the back of Paredes.
Houston closer Josh Hader (5-1) retired the side in order in the ninth and Bennett Sousa retired three straight batters in the 10th for his second save.
Angels starter Yusei Kikuchi gave up home runs to Pena and Paredes for a 2-0 Astros lead in the held the Astros to four hits, striking out nine and walking none, for the rest of his seven-inning start.
Jo Adell trimmed Houston’s lead to 2-1 in the fourth with a 426-foot homer off Astros starter Hunter Brown. Angels rookie Christian Moore, a first-round pick out of Tennessee in 2024, tied it 2-2 with his first major league homer to open the seventh.
Tempers flared in the third when Brown hit Angels shortstop Zach Neto in the elbow with a 95-mph sinker. Both benches and bullpens emptied, but no punches were thrown, and order was quickly restored.
Astros center fielder Jake Meyers raced to the gap in left-center to make a spectacular, full-extension diving catch of Adell’s drive with a runner on first base and one out in the bottom of the eighth to preserve a 2-2 tie.
The home runs by Peña and Paredes marked the first time in three years the Astros have opened a game with two homers. Jose Altuve and Peña last accomplished the feat on July 24, 2022 at Seattle.
Astros LHP Brandon Walter (0-0, 1.53 ERA) opposes Angels RHP José Soriano (4-5, 3.54) on Saturday night.