Houston Astros pitcher Framber Valdez to miss World Baseball Classic due to team concerns: "He really wanted to pitch, but we recommended that he not"

Houston Astros pitcher Framber Valdez won't be participating in the World Baseball Classic this year. Valdez was slated to pitch for Team Dominican Republic but won't due to team concerns.

The Astros are worried the pitcher may injure himself as he had a heavy workload last season. He led the league with 201.1 innings last season. Losing Valdez is a huge blow for Team Dominican Republic.

"He really wanted to pitch, but we recommended that he not," Houston Astros general manager Dana Brown said.

Valdez is just one of the latest players to drop out of the WBC. Former Astros player Carlos Correa, alongside Luis Castillo and Jordan Romano, recently announced that they won't be participating.

Fans don't like seeing players drop out of the event. It's one of the most exciting tournaments in all of baseball. It's better for the game if all of the stars are playing.

Even with the departure of Framber Valdez, Team Dominican Republic is still stacked. Their core team is made up of Juan Soto, Manny Machado, Vladimir Guerrerro Jr. and Rafael Devers.

Opposing pitchers aren't going to be able to take a pitch off with this lineup. Team Dominican Republic will be feared heading into the tournament.

Framber Valdez withdrawing because of the Houston Astros puts Team Dominican Republic in a tough spot

World Series, Game 6: Philadelphia Phillies vs. Houston Astros

Team Dominican Republic will now have to replace three starting pitchers: Framber Valdez, Luis Severina and Luis Castillo. The two starters on the roster that are left are Sandy Alcantara and Christian Javier. With the tournament starting on March 8, this doesn't give them a lot of time.

This puts the team at a disadvantage. They have to fill their roster when most teams' rosters are already full. This will leave them with slim pickings to fill out their pitching rotation.

Team Dominican Republic will also have their hands full with the amount of talent spread across all teams. Samurai Japan is looking as strong as ever, and Team USA has a star-studded lineup.

Team USA is the defending champion. The Americans won the title in 2017, defeating Team Puerto Rico. If they can repeat this year, they'll tie Samurai Japan as the only team to win multiple WBC titles.

There is no better way to start the baseball season than the World Baseball Classic. Get ready for an awesome tournament to begin what should be a memorable 2023 baseball season.