Framber Valdez has held the opposition scoreless in three of his starts this season. One of those came in his latest outing, in Cleveland on Saturday.
The Detroit Tigers left-hander will look to continue putting up zeros when he opposes the visiting Colorado Rockies on Friday night.
Valdez (9-10, 4.17 ERA) gave up just three hits and one walk against the Guardians. He struck out three. The 32-year-old veteran normally relies on his breaking pitches, but increased fastball usage helped him to silence Cleveland’s hitters.
“This is how this sport works,” Valdez said. “It’s about deception. For me to do my best, I want them to be thinking the pitch is going to be one thing and it’s not the pitch they are looking for. Deception is part of the plan.”
His curveball and sinker were enhanced by the effectiveness of his four-seam fastball.
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said, “I think it’s better for his curveball, just being able to tunnel it a little bit and give the hitters something to deal with. They’re trying to go down and lift balls off Framber and he’s given up some contact with them getting on plane with the ball, especially as he’s elevated the sinker.
“The hitters’ approach has been to try to lift the ball, and that’s been a tough recipe for Framber. But having the four-seamer get above the barrel makes his whole arsenal a little better.”
Valdez has been stingy against the Rockies in his career. He has won all four of his starts against them, allowing just four runs in 25 2/3 innings (1.40 ERA).
He will be opposed by rookie right-hander Mason Adams (0-0, 3.95), who will be making his fourth major league start. In his latest outing, against the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday, Adams gave up three runs and eight hits while striking out seven and walking one in 4 2/3 innings.
“The poise that he shows on the mound, that’s not normal for a young guy to come up and do that,” Colorado manager Warren Schaeffer said. “His first two starts, especially on the road in hostile environments, have been very impressive. He’s shown the ability to make in-game adjustments already, which is impressive. Obviously the physical stuff has been really good, too. His ability to spin the ball has been good as well as his ability to throw his heater where he wants to.”
Adams, who underwent Tommy John surgery last year, was acquired from the Chicago White Sox last month. His curveball is a key component to his arsenal.
“Since I’ve been here, it’s been, ‘OK, keep doing what you’re doing,'” said Adams, who has yet to face the Tigers. “There’s been a little more focus on the location of breaking balls, making sure they’re down in the zone or below the zone. That was the main focus for me going forward.”
The Tigers (67-79) are coming off a series win against Minnesota. They took two of three games from the Twins, capped by a 7-2 victory on Wednesday. Detroit had lost its previous seven series.
The Rockies (55-91) will be looking to snap a four-game losing streak. They dropped three straight to the New York Yankees this week, including a 10-3 thumping on Thursday night. Colorado has just three wins in its past 13 games.
–Field Level Media
