Framber Valdez drilled his own catcher with a 94 mph fastball Tuesday night, and the Astros’ explanation isn’t fooling anyone.
The incident happened in the fifth inning after Trent Grisham took Valdez deep for a grand slam. Moments later, Valdez fired a heater that caught Cesar Salazar square in the chest before bouncing away.
Salazar’s wide-eyed reaction said everything. This wasn’t your typical crossed-up sign.
But hours after the game, the 29-year-old catcher pointed fingers at Yankees fans for the mix-up.
“There was a good amount of Yankees fans, so it was pretty loud after the grand slam. Maybe my pitchcom wasn’t in the right spot, so I pressed the wrong button.”
Yeaaaaaah after hearing Cesar, I think he’s covering for Framber pic.twitter.com/BTgXHigxk0
— Space City Sports (@LiveSCS) September 3, 2025
That’s a creative explanation, but it doesn’t add up when you watch the replay. Salazar’s immediate reaction looked more like shock than confusion.
What makes this even more telling? Anthony Volpe let the pitch sail by despite it being right down the middle – the same location that Grisham crushed moments earlier.
Valdez got pulled after five innings, having surrendered six earned runs in Houston’s 7-1 loss. Not exactly the night he was looking for against his former team’s biggest rival.
To his credit, Salazar has less than 50 games of big league catching experience, so maybe the story holds water. Pitchcom systems can be tricky when the crowd gets loud.
But that instant reaction told a different story.
Valdez has since backed up his catcher’s version of events:
“It was not intentional. I called for center. That’s the pitch I wanted. There was a lot of noise, and that was the pitch he wanted me to throw.”
The way I see it, either the Astros had a legitimate communication breakdown at the worst possible moment, or they’re sticking to their story to avoid airing dirty laundry.
Given the timing and Salazar’s reaction, most fans aren’t buying the explanation. Sometimes the simplest answer is the right one – and frustrated pitchers don’t always make the best decisions after giving up grand slams.
