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Stats

Esmerlyn Valdez crushes two homers vs. Brewers

Valdez_Esmerlyn (1).jpg

Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Player Stats

Esmerlyn Valdez went 3-for-4 with two home runs and six RBI to lead the Pirates to a 7-6 win over the Brewers in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader.

Valdez took Milwaukee starter Brandon Sproat deep with a 421-foot blast to center field in the early stages of the contest before propelling Pittsburgh ahead with a seventh-inning grand slam off Brewers relief ace Aaron Ashby. The power-hitting 22-year-old rookie also added a run-scoring single just for good measure. It was his first career multi-homer performance and gives him nine round-trippers through just 26 games this season. He’ll continue to strike out more than fantasy managers would prefer, creating some batting average risk once his near-.400 BABIP inevitably regresses, but the power is real enough to justify the gamble.

- George Bissell

Recap

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Diaz is a 'massive linchpin' in Rays' lineup

Eric Samulski and James Schiano break down why Yandy Diaz is a crucial piece to the Tampa Bay Rays' lineup in this World Series and how he is one of the most underrated hitters in the MLB.

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Diaz is a ‘massive linchpin’ in Rays’ lineup

Contreras’ key role in pushing Brewers to WS title

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Murphy: Brewers ‘refuse’ to use layoff as excuse

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Dodgers face ‘murky’ future after NLCS sweep

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Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

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Pirates placed OF Esmerlyn Valdez on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain.

Valdez winds up on the shelf after suffering the injury during Friday’s game against the Cubs. He’s likely done for the season with just over two weeks left. The power-hitting 22-year-old wraps up a strong rookie campaign with a .232/.345/.510 slash line with 40 runs scored, 17 homers and 47 RBI across 287 plate appearances in 72 games. His all-or-nothing approach, which yielded a 37 percent strikeout rate in his first taste of the majors, is going to result in some extended cold spells, but he’s capable of launching homers in bunches when he’s locked in at the dish.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Esmerlyn Valdez (hamstring) is not in the lineup for Saturday’s game against the Cubs.

No surprise after Valdez was removed from Friday’s game with hamstring discomfort. It sounds like a potential injured list situation, but the Pirates have the roster flexibility to wait a couple days before making that decision, if that’s how they want to proceed. It’ll be Jake Mangum taking over in right field for the moment.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Esmerlyn Valdez left Friday’s game in the sixth inning with a hamstring injury.

The Pirates are calling it hamstring discomfort, but Valdez had to be helped off the field. Unless was just a really bad cramp, Valdez’s season is most likely over. That would mean more at-bats for Jake Mangum and Billy Cook, unless maybe the Pirates want to give Jhostynxon Garcia a try. Garcia, though, just returned from injury in Triple-A.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Esmerlyn Valdez homered and walked Wednesday in the Pirates’ 4-2 win over the White Sox.

The homer off Davis Martin was Valdez’s third in 34 games after he hit 14 in 37 games to open his major league career. He’d seem to be in line to lose some playing time once Ryan O’Hearn comes off the IL, though probably not as much as he’d lose if O’Hearn were ready to play right field right away. Most likely, he’ll be limited to DH and first base initially.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Esmerlyn Valdez is out of the lineup on Thursday against the Giants.

Valdez was a great story earlier this year, and he should certainly get a chance to compete for a lineup spot in 2027, but he has really struggled of late. In 39 games since the All-Star break, he is hitting .189/.335/.379 with six home runs and 18 RBI but also a 39.6 percent strikeout rate and just a 71.7 percent zone contact rate. Those contact issues are going to continue to be a major obstacle to his fantasy value unless he can find a fix, and he does not need to be rostered in redraft leagues right now.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Esmerlyn Valdez hit a two-run homer Sunday in the Pirates’ 5-4 victory over the Cardinals.

After four weeks of being stuck on 14 homers, Valdez has collected two in his last four games. He’s racking a lot more strikeouts than hits of late, but at least he has drawn some walks to keep his OBP up; he’s batted .197/.337/.325 with 40 strikeouts in 95 plate appearances this month. He’ll probably remain in the lineup most of the time until Ryan O’Hearn returns, something that’s at least a couple of weeks away from happening.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Esmerlyn Valdez went 2-for-4 with two doubles, a walk, and two runs scored as the Pirates defeated the Red Sox 8-3 on Sunday.

Valdez doubled in the first inning and came around to score when Bryan Reynolds followed with a double of his own. He doubled again in the third, this time scoring on a Brandon Lowe groundout. The 22-year-old was off to an electric start in his big league career, but he has slumped in August with a strikeout rate pushing 40 percent. The slump coincides with a stretch in which the entire Pittsburgh lineup has struggled to produce. Valdez will ultimately be a streaky hitter with big power and big swing-and-miss.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Esmerlyn Valdez is not in Pittsburgh’s starting lineup against the Brewers on Thursday.

Since taking a scary-looking hit by pitch last Tuesday, Valdez is 1-for-23 in his last eight games. Ronny Simon is starting in right field against RHP Dustin May.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Esmerlyn Valdez (wrist) is in the lineup for Tuesday’s game against the Diamondbacks.

Valdez managed to avoid serious injury, with initial X-rays came back negative for any fractures, after being hit in the left wrist by a pitch in the bottom of the fourth inning on Monday night. He’s back in right field and hitting cleanup following the injury scare. The 22-year-old rookie slugger has been an unexpected revelation for Pittsburgh, and fantasy managers as well, hitting .290/.386/.702 with 14 homers and 36 RBI across 145 plate appearances in 38 games this season. He’s overdue for some regression in the batting average department based on his plate skills, but the over-the-fence power is very real and it’s fantastic.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Esmerlyn Valdez is listed as day-to-day after getting hit on the hand on Monday night.

Valdez had to be removed from the game and appeared to be in clear pain. However, the X-rays revealed no fracture, so the 22-year-old will simply wait for the pain and swelling to go down before re-entering the lineup. Both the Pirates and fantasy managers can breathe a sigh of relief.

Rotoworld

Brice Turang

MIL 2nd Baseman #2
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Brice Turang was moved down to the fifth spot in the Brewers’ starting lineup for Game 1 of the World Series against the Rays on Friday evening in Milwaukee.

Turang has been a fixture in the second spot in the Brewers’ lineup in the postseason, but he’ll slide down to the fifth spot in the order with Rays’ right-hander Nick Martinez on the hill on Friday. Jake Bauers moves up to the second spot in the order while Christian Yelich will hit third. Here’s the full lineup that the Brewers will roll out in front of their home faithful and the entire baseball world on Friday night: Jackson Chourio (LF),
Jake Bauers (1B), Christian Yelich (DH), William Contreras (C), Brice Turang (2B), Garrett Mitchell (CF), Cooper Pratt (SS), Sal Frelick (RF) and David Hamilton (3B).
- David Shovein

Source: MLB
Jackson Chourio

Jake Bauers

Christian Yelich

William Contreras

Garrett Mitchell

Cooper Pratt

Sal Frelick

David Hamilton
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Ben Williamson

TB 2nd Baseman #15
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Ben Williamson will start at second base and bat eighth for the Rays in Game 1 of the World Series against the Brewers on Friday evening.

Williamson has been functioning in a short-side platoon role with nearly all of his starts coming against left-handers, so it’s interesting to see him in there against Brewers’ ace Jacob Misiorowski for Game 1. Here’s the full lineup that manager Kevin Cash will deploy as the Rays look to secure the first World Series title in their franchise’s history: Yandy Díaz (DH), Jonathan Aranda (1B), Chandler Simpson (LF), Junior Caminero (3B), Liam Hicks (C), Jonny DeLuca (CF), Victor Mesa Jr. (RF), Ben Williamson (2B) and Taylor Walls (SS).
- David Shovein

Source: MLB
Yandy Díaz

Jonathan Aranda

Chandler Simpson

Junior Caminero

Liam Hicks

Jonny DeLuca

Victor Mesa Jr.

Taylor Walls
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Oliver Marmol

STL Manager
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The Cardinals have decided not to bring back hitting coach Brant Brown next season.

Seems like the Cardinals are really dropping the ball here. Brown was hired following a 2024 season in which the Cardinals ranked 22nd in MLB in scoring. They climbed to 19th in 2025 and 17th this year despite shedding personnel, as Jordan Walker busted out and Alec Burleson and Iván Herrera continued their steadier climbs. On the other hand, guys like Nolan Gorman, Masyn Winn and Victor Scott II have regressed. Aside from Brown, the rest of the Cardinals’ coaching staff is expected to remain intact, though that could change if bench coach Daniel Descalso gets interviews for managerial openings.
- Matthew Pouliot

Source: The Athletic

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Alec Marsh

KC Starting Pitcher #48
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Royals sent RHP Alec Marsh outright to Triple-A Omaha.

Marsh had a 4.96 ERA in 33 starts and 10 relief appearances for the Royals in 2023 and ’24 before missing the last two years with shoulder issues that resulted in labrum surgery in Oct. 2025. While the idea at the time of the surgery was that he’d be ready for 2027, there were absolutely no updates on his recovery over the course of the year. The Royals will probably look to re-sign him to a minor league deal if he’s healthy.
- Matthew Pouliot

Transaction

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Alex Lange

KC Relief Pitcher #56
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Royals sent RHP Alex Lange, RHP Mason Black, RHP Connor Seabold and RHP Easton McGee outright to Triple-A Omaha.

As per usual, Kansas City is the first organization to start its offseason roster purge. Seabold and McGee have already opted for free agency, and Lange will soon become a free agent, too. Lange picked up 10 saves for the Royals between June and July, but he was never very effective at any point, and he ended the year with a 6.75 ERA and a 60/33 K/BB in 60 innings. He’ll likely have to take a minor league deal this winter.
- Matthew Pouliot

Transaction
Mason Black

Connor Seabold

Easton McGee
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Briggs McKenzie

ATL Starting Pitcher
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Briggs McKenzie tossed five scoreless innings for Glendale of the Arizona Fall League on Thursday.

That’s a rare pitching performance in the AFL, especially coming from a 20-year-old. McKenzie was the Braves’ fourth-round pick in 2025, though it took first-round money to lure him away from LSU. He has a 5.79 ERA in four starts in Arizona after posting a 2.08 ERA in 26 innings over seven starts in the minors this year. He probably won’t be a factor in the majors in 2027, but his is definitely a name to know.
- Matthew Pouliot

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John Peck

DET Shortstop #18
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John Peck went 3-for-5 with a homer, five RBI, a walk and a steal for Scottsdale of the AFL on Thursday.

Peck, who finished out this year as the Tigers’ primary shortstop, was off to a horrid start in Arizona, going 2-for-35 until busting out yesterday. He’s due some Triple-A time at the start of next year, but he should eventually fit back in with the Tigers as at least a utilityman.
- Matthew Pouliot

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Alex McCoy

SD Outfield
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Alex McCoy hit a pair of two-run homers and walked Thursday for the Javelinas of the Arizona Fall League.

McCoy is hitting .256/.348/.641 with four homers in 11 games. The 24-year-old, who went undrafted out of Hofstra in 2024, finished the regular season at .278/.355/.467 with 19 homers between High-A and Double-A. A corner outfielder and first baseman, he faces an uphill climb to reach the majors, but tearing up the AFL will get him some attention. He’s one of only two players with four homers to date.
- Matthew Pouliot

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Tai Peete

STL Outfield
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Tai Peete went 2-for-5 and tripled in a fourth straight game for the Javelinas of the Arizona Fall League on Thursday.

Four straight games with a triple is pretty cool. It’s a feat pulled off only once in MLB this century, that by Nomar Garciaparra in 2003. Peete is batting .348/.423/.674 and is 7-for-9 stealing bases through 11 games.
- Matthew Pouliot

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Brooks Bryan

KC Catcher
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Brooks Bryan hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the ninth for the Saguaros of the Arizona Fall League on Thursday.

The homer was Bryan’s third in six games. He also singled and walked. Bryan was the Royals’ eighth-round pick out of Troy University in 2025. He hit .319/.406/.496 in 33 games in Low-A ball this year before getting hurt at the end of May. He’s back now and thriving offensively, but he’s been limited to playing first base in the AFL.
- Matthew Pouliot

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