Houston Astros left-hander Framber Valdez came within one out of his second career no-hitter in a 4-2 victory over the Texas Rangers in Arlington, Texas, on Tuesday night.
Valdez was just over one year removed from his first no-hitter, which came on Aug. 1, 2023, against the Cleveland Guardians. He kept the Rangers out of the hit column through eight innings on Tuesday, then ran into trouble in the ninth.
After walking Robbie Grossman to open the frame, Valdez got Ezequiel Duran to ground into a double play to inch closer to the 18th no-hitter in Astros franchise history.
But Josh Smith then drew a walk before Corey Seager spoiled the no-hitter — and shutout — with a two-run blast to right-center.
That marked the end of the night for Valdez, who surrendered the two runs on one hit in his 8⅔ innings. He walked three and struck out five while throwing 107 pitches.
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Valdez (11-5) came away with the win when Josh Hader got Josh Jung to fly out after issuing a walk to Marcus Semien. Hader picked up his 23rd save of the year.
Right-hander Ronel Blanco fired the Astros’ most recent no-hitter, which came in a 10-0 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on April 1.
