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Framber Valdez: A Groundball Machine You Can Rely On
1 day agoFramber Alert! Valdez notched yet another strong season in 2024, finishing the year with a 15-7 record, 2.91 ERA, and 3.07 K/BB ratio. Now 31 years old, Valdez is showing no signs of slowing down with age. His 24% strikeout rate was in line with his career average, and his 94.5 MPH fastball velocity is actually a full MPH higher than his career mark. And, of course, Valdez was elite when it comes to groundball rate. He led all qualified pitchers with a 60.6% groundball rate, and had his usual .276 BABIP against as well. Valdez has been steady as a rock since coming into his own in 2020, and there are no major red flags in his profile that suggest a downturn is coming. Some of the starters going around Valdez in NFBC leagues include Pablo Lopez, Michael King, and Shota Imanaga. Valdez may not have the highest ceiling among that group, but he might be the safest bet among them. Valdez is a fine grab at cost for the 2025 season.
