ESPN made big mistake with Framber Valdez’s no-hitter attempt

Jul 17, 2022; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros starting pitcher Framber Valdez (59) reacts in the dugout during the game against the Oakland Athletics at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Somebody at ESPN apparently jumped the gun with Framber Valdez.

The Houston Astros lefty Valdez very nearly threw a no-hitter on Tuesday night against the Texas Rangers before losing it with two outs in the ninth inning. Almost everybody was expecting Valdez to finish off the job … including ESPN.

In a mistake that quickly went viral on social media, ESPN posted on their front page prematurely that Valdez had thrown the no-hitter. That obviously did not end up being the case though, and even the live score update just above the incorrect headline showed that the score was in fact 4-2 (after Rangers star Corey Seager ended the no-hit bid in a very brutal way).

Weird ESPN front page on the near no-no from Framber Valdez pic.twitter.com/tBFi6Cfbvt

— David Matheson (@davidfmatheson) August 7, 2024

The mistake was quickly deleted and replaced by ESPN (but not before the screenshots were taken and circulated online).

Valdez came about as close to the no-hitter as possible, getting the first 26 outs and then going to a two-strike count against Rangers outfielder Josh Smith. But Valdez ended up walking Smith, and Seager then ended the no-hit bid on the very next pitch.

On the bright side for Valdez, he already threw a no-hitter earlier in his career and still ended up getting the win on Tuesday after closer Josh Hader got the final out on the Rangers. As for ESPN though, mistakes like this have become all too common for them in recent months.