White Sox-Astros Opening Day starting pitchers: Cease vs. Valdez

A pair of top five finishers in the 2022 American League Cy Young race -- lefty Framber Valdez of the Astros and right-hander Dylan Cease of the White Sox -- will get Opening Day starts on Thursday night when Houston unveils its championship banner and begins the quest for a second straight World Series title at Minute Maid Park.

The Astros, who won 106 games last year and romped through the playoffs -- going 11-2 and beating the Phillies in six games to win their second title in six years -- haven’t lost on Opening Day since they moved to the American League. They’re 10-0 in that span and will be playing the White Sox for the first time to begin a season.

Astros manager Dusty Baker, who ranks ninth all time with 2,093 managerial wins, will square off against Chicago’s Pedro Grifol, who is making his managerial debut. He served the previous three seasons as the Royals’ bench coach under Mike Matheny.

RHP Dylan Cease
Previous Opening Day starts: None
2022 Season: 14-8 with a 2.20 ERA, 32 starts, 78 walks, 227 strikeouts and a 180 ERA+ over 184 innings

Spring Training didn’t exactly open up great for Cease, as he allowed 11 earned runs in two-thirds of an inning during his second Cactus League start against the Royals in Surprise, Ariz. But in the long and short run, those brief struggles were about nothing more than ramping up for the 2023 campaign following his Cy Young-worthy 2022 effort.

“I’m very pleased with where I’m at,” Cease said after his start on March 19. “I think the last couple of starts, I’ve shown spurts of kind of where I am, and then I’m starting to do it more consistently. I expect to continue to climb or stay at least here. I’m pleased with where I’m at.”

Cease, 27, finished second in the 2022 American League Cy Young balloting behind Justin Verlander, putting together another ace-like campaign after striking out 226 during the ‘21 season. Cease is 0-3 with a 6.30 ERA over four career starts against the Astros, including six earned runs allowed over 3 1/3 innings in his lone start at Minute Maid Park.

He also started Game 3 of the 2021 AL Division Series at home against Houston and is more than ready for the frenetic energy of taking the mound on Opening Day.

Grifol has watched Cease from across the field as the Royals’ bench coach, but he has learned more about Cease’s unbelievable demeanor working with him up close.

“No emotion, locked into his work. Stress doesn’t bother him,” Grifol said. “At least he doesn’t show it. That’s a weapon. There’s a reason why he’s doing what he’s doing. Really, really locked into his work and committed to being really good.”

LHP Framber Valdez
Previous Opening Day starts: 2022
2022 season: 17-6 with a 2.82 ERA, 31 starts, 67 walks, 194 strikeouts and a 137 ERA+ over 201 1/3 innings

Valdez started on Opening Day last year for the Astros because Verlander’s throwing schedule in his return to game action after missing nearly two entire seasons didn’t line up with the calendar. With Verlander gone and coming off a terrific 2022 season, Valdez is the clear-cut ace of Houston’s staff and a Cy Young contender.

“It would mean a lot to me,” Valdez said last week when asked about a possible Opening Day start. “I would be very satisfied with it and feel very proud of all the hard work I’ve done.”

Last year, the bulldog lefty led the AL in innings (201 1/3), quality starts (26), fewest home runs per nine innings (0.49) and ground-ball percentage (67.3), while ranking second in wins and opponents’ OPS (.600). He set a Major League record with 25 consecutive quality starts from April 25-Sept. 18. Valdez parlayed those numbers into a fifth-place AL Cy Young finish.

In the postseason, Valdez dominated as the Astros won all four of his starts, including the clincher in Game 6 of the World Series against the Phillies. He was 3-0 with a 1.44 ERA with 33 strikeouts in 25 innings and he became the third Astros pitcher to make three or more starts of at least six innings in the playoffs while allowing one run or fewer (Charlie Morton in 2017 and Gerrit Cole in ‘19).