Esmerlyn Valdez out of the lineup on Thursday

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

It’s surprising that the Pirates didn’t offer a postgame update after Valdez was hit by a pitch during the early stages of Monday’s series opener against the Diamondbacks. The power-hitting 22-year-old appeared to get hit in the left hand/wrist area and presumably underwent X-rays to determine whether he suffered any fractures. It’s possible there was too much swelling to be able to tell anything on initial imaging. There should be some much-needed clarity on his status leading into Tuesday’s contest.

Valdez was struck by a pitch on the left hand during the fourth inning of Monday’s series opener in Pittsburgh. The 22-year-old rookie sensation, who has hit 14 homers in 38 games this season, will head for X-ray to determine whether he suffered any fractures. There should be an update on his status following the contest.

Valdez’s homer was his 14th this season, tying him for the third-most through 37 big league games, according to Sarah Langs of MLB. It has been an incredible run, but his strikeout rate remains at 38 percent, which will be difficult to overcome over a longer sample. It helps that he’s part of a lineup that ranks second in the majors in runs per game. Valdez is a must-start fantasy option until his power heater fully cools off.

Valdez put Pittsburgh ahead with an opposite-field 431-foot tater into the right-field seats against Yankees starter Ryan Weathers. The 22-year-old rookie sensation is up to 13 homers in 32 games at the highest level. The massive over-the-fence pop is very real. However, there are several underlying indicators, most notably his literal .400 BABIP along with a staggering 37.7 percent strikeout rate, that suggest he’s overdue for some regression.

Valdez’s home run was his 12th in the first 105 at-bats of his MLB career. He hit a two-run shot off Will Dion in the ninth inning. Valdez will come back to earth eventually, but he’s made it abundantly clear that his power is legitimate by posting a .733 slugging percentage in his first 31 career games.