Yankees Rumors: NYY interest in former Astros ace could spell doom

The Toronto Blue Jays fired the opening salvo on the starting pitching free-agent market, locking up Dylan Cease on a massive $210 million contract. Cease may have been an option for the New York Yankees, who will now have to look elsewhere to shore up the 2026 rotation.

Where they go could be interesting. They've been eyeing 27-year-old Japanese star Tatsuya Imai, whose recent comments have made a Bronx landing look even more likely. Imai isn't the only option, however, and a recent Jon Heyman report would have them looking at one of the most experienced and accomplished starters on the market.

Heyman reported that the Yankees have checked in on former Houston Astros ace Framber Valdez. Bringing Valdez into the fold would be an absolute disaster.

Jon Heyman's report of the Yankees' interest in Framber Valdez could blow up big time

Logistically, Valdez is an odd fit for a Yankees rotation that already includes two other high-end lefties in Max Fried and Carlos Rodón. One high-end southpaw is a necessity. Two is a luxury. Three is overkill.

More importantly, though, is Valdez's questionable fit in pinstripes. The Yankees saw his volatile nature firsthand when the Bombers visited Daikin Park in Houston and watched Valdez drill his catcher in the chest following a Trent Grisham grand slam.

The "unintentional" cross-up of Cesar Salazar made waves in Houston, but could you imagine how the New York media would treat that sort of behavior? That wasn't Valdez's first questionable conduct against a teammate or coach, either.

Moreover, the 32-year-old has a lot of mileage on his left arm, with 767.2 innings pitched over the last four years, the second-most in the league. Durability is usually a positive, but the heavy workload seemed to take a toll on Valdez down the stretch in 2025.

After the All-Star break this year, Valdez tossed 71 innings and posted a 5.20 ERA. Things got particularly bad in September when he saw that number balloon to 6.51.

That nosedive in performance helped doom a floundering Astros team. Already reeling from injuries, Houston saw its AL West lead evaporate, then its wild card hopes slip away. Normally, you'd count on a top-of-the-rotation arm that is as grizzled as Valdez to be the stopper in these kinds of situations, but instead, he was the lit match that led to the whole thing combusting. Tack on his 4.34 career playoff ERA, with marks of 10.38, 8.22, and 6.23 in his past three series, and the resumé only looks worse.

That's not the kind of pitcher the Yankees need and, frankly, the increased scrutiny in the New York pressure cooker would only exacerbate things. Valdez could work out well elsewhere, and if that place is Baltimore (as has also been rumored), he could be a thorn in the Yankees' side. Even so, he's a fish that the Yankees would be wise to let swim by.