Mets among teams speaking with top free agent starter

Valdez has spent the past eight seasons of his career with the Houston Astros and is one of the most coveted arms on the free agency market. The 32-year-old is coming off an excellent 2025 season for Houston, posting a 13-11 record in 31 starts with a 3.66 ERA, 187 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.24 across 192 innings pitched.

The past four seasons in particular have been superb for Valdez, who has tossed 767.2 innings over 121 starts (with eight complete games) while posting a 3.21 ERA during that span. One of those complete games for the lefty was a no-hitter, which came during the 2023 season against the Cleveland Guardians on August 1, becoming the first southpaw in Astros history to toss a no-hitter.

With the Astros showing no indication of wanting to re-sign Valdez, especially after they missed the postseason this past season, he is expected to have many suitors, with the Mets reportedly one of them.

While New York is in dire need to bolster their starting pitching staff this winter after it plagued them during their three-and-a-half collapse in 2025, this report from Heyman comes after Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported earlier this month that the ballclub is "reluctant to hand out long-term offers." Feinsand did, though, also report that the Mets were "among the favorites" for the lefty ace.

The contract that Valdez may be seeking is expected to be higher than what David Stearns may be willing to offer, but the Amazins' still lack a frontline ace to their rotation. Even though Nolan McLean gave Mets fans something to be excited about during his impressive late-season call-up to the big leagues, New York's only projected starters at the moment consist of McLean, David Peterson, Kodai Senga, Clay Holmes and Sean Manaea. McLean is also a rookie, and a team with championship aspirations like the Mets shouldn't be so dependent on a relatively inexperienced arm.

Top pitching prospects Brandon Sproat and Jonah Tong are also expected to be in the mix to join the Mets' rotation in 2026 after showing promising strides during their brief stints in the major leagues last season. It would not be a surprise, though, if the young righties start next season in Triple-A due to them needing time to develop.

It goes without saying that the Mets still have a lot of work to do this offseason, especially after seeing some of their key players depart. And with the rotation being a top area of need to address, Framber Valdez looks to be a name to be on the lookout for between now and the start of spring training.

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