Valdez sharp after scrapping experiment
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Spring training is a good time for experimentation. However, consider Framber Valdez's Pitchcom experiment done.
After trying his hand at calling his own pitches with a Pitchcom transmitter in his first Grapefrut League start, the Astros' presumed opening-day starter handed the duties back to catcher Yainer Diaz on Monday and pitched well. Valdez threw four innings of one-run ball, throwing 35 of his 50 pitches for strikes in a 5-3 loss to the Tigers at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches.
Astros manager Joe Espada said the decision to shut down Operation Pitchcom was mutual after a discussion between both sides.
Pitchcom, which was introduced in 2022, is a wireless communication device between the pitcher and catcher that eliminates the need for visible signals that can be decoded by the opposition. Buttons
pressed on the transmitter send the pitch call to whoever is wearing the receiver. In 2023, the system was adjusted to give teams the option of allowing the pitcher to wear the transmitter, which a few veterans like Max Scherzer, Shohei Ohtani and Chris Bassitt did.
Valdez won't be following suit. Espada convinced him it doesn't really matter who presses the buttons on the device, since the pitcher can always shake off any unsatisfactory decision from the catcher.
“We're just trying to help him,” Espada said. “I
said, ‘You're still going to throw the pitch you want to regardless of who's pressing the button. So if we could take that from you and have the catcher do it, then you can just focus on executing the pitch or the running game and stuff like that.' ”
Even after a small sample size, Valdez was amenable to the switch.
“I tried it last time just to see how easy it would be to call the pitches myself between hitters, in between innings and things like that, just to think about it,” Valdez said through an interpreter. “I think it's the same thing as the catcher calling the pitches himself, but I think it's honestly better just to have him call it and for me to wait for my pitch.”
The results certainly were an improvement. With the Pitchcom receiver attached to his glove, Valdez allowed three runs on five hits in 11⁄3 innings in his first Grapefruit League start on March 1. His next start was scrapped due to rain, relegating him to pitching on the back fields of the Astros' complex. Against the Tigers, Valdez gave up four hits in four innings, striking out four with no walks.
Although Monday's results in the box score were an upgrade, Espada especially liked how Valdez's pace improved with Diaz sending the pitch signals to Valdez.
“I thought today it showed that getting the catcher to call the pitches — or press the buttons, right? — and then him just worrying about execution is the way to go,” Espada said.
Valdez likely will get two more starts in Florida before facing the Yankees in the season-opening series at the end of the month, and he likes his progression thus far.
“I'm getting to where I want to be,” Valdez said. “Like I said before, getting 60, 70, 80, 90% there. Just taking it a step at a time, and I'm getting to where I want to be to start the season.”
For a mid-march start, Valdez looked strong, hitting 95 mph on the stadium radar gun and getting six of his 12 outs via the ground ball.
“Framber was good,” Espada said. “(He was) in the (strike) zone, good sinker, good breaking ball, threw some good changeups to some righties also. I thought he was really good.”