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Stats

Esmerlyn Valdez hits IL with hamstring strain

Valdez_Esmerlyn (1).jpg

Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

Player Stats

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.

- George Bissell

Transaction

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Smoltz: NLCS will be 'unbelievably' close series

John Smoltz joints the Dan Patrick Show to weigh in on this year's NLCS matchup, how the Brewers can dethrone the Dodgers and former generations of pitchers compared to today's pitchers.

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Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

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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.
Esmerlyn Valdez

PIT Right Fielder #55

The Pirates didn’t provide an update on Esmerlyn Valdez (hand, wrist) following Monday’s game against the Diamondbacks.

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.

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Rob Zastryzny

FA Relief Pitcher #58
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Rob Zastryzny has elected free agency.

The 34-year-old southpaw was sent outright to Triple-A Nashville by the Brewers near the end of September. Rather than waiting it out to see if he could be an option to work out of their bullpen at some point during the remainder of the postseason, Zastryzny will head to the free agent market. He made just 11 appearances at the Triple-A level this season, registering a stellar 1.93 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and a 9/2 K/BB ratio over 9 1/3 innings.
- David Shovein

Transaction

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Ian Hamilton

FA Relief Pitcher #71
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Ian Hamilton has elected free agency.

The 31-year-old hurler made just four appearances with the Braves during the 2026 campaign, registering a 7.71 ERA, 1.93 WHIP and a 4/3 K/BB ratio over 4 2/3 innings. He’ll get a head start on free agency.
- David Shovein

Transaction

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Garrett Whitlock

BOS Relief Pitcher #22
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Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Globe reports that imaging on the injured leg of right-hander Garrett Whitlock revealed that he had been pitching through a fractured tibia that wasn’t properly diagnosed.

Given the severity of the injury, it’s awfully impressive that Whitlock was able to continue pitching — and pitch as well as he was — down the stretch and into the postseason for the Red Sox. The 30-year-old hurler isn’t expected to require surgery, but he will be in a walking boot for the next 4-6 weeks while the injury heals. Whitlock should still be able to go through his regular off-season routine and should be a full participant at the start of spring training.
- David Shovein

Injury

Source: Gabrielle Starr

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Miguel Rojas

LAD 2nd Baseman #72
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Dodgers’ manager Dave Roberts told reporters on Friday that while Miguel Rojas (back) has improved, his status for the NLCS remains in question.

Rojas exited Game 3 of the NLDS due to pain in his lower back and sat out Game 4 on Wednesday. While he has progressed steadily during their time off, he’s still not ready to return and could potentially be left off of the Dodgers’ roster for their NLCS battle against the Brewers. Expect the Dodgers to make a final decision on his status on Sunday.
- David Shovein

Source: Jack Harris

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Tarik Skubal

LAD Starting Pitcher #29
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Dodgers’ manager Dave Roberts confirmed Friday that Tarik Skubal will start Game 1 of the NLCS against the Brewers on Sunday.

That was the expectation all along, but it has now been confirmed. Right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto will start in Game 2 with Blake Snell expected to start in Game 3. Skubal delivered a dominant performance in his Dodgers’ postseason debut, striking out seven batters over six innings of one-run ball in a victory over the Braves in Game 1 of the NLDS.
- David Shovein

Source: Fabian Ardaya
Yoshinobu Yamamoto
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Gavin Williams

CLE Starting Pitcher #32
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Guardians’ manager Stephen Vogt announced Friday that Gavin Williams will start in Game 5 of the ALDS against the White Sox on Saturday evening.

The Guardians’ ace came out of the bullpen in Game 4 on Thursday, throwing 18 pitches to record the final three outs. Williams racked up 11 strikeouts over five innings of two-run baseball as the Guardians dropped Game 2 on Monday. It’ll be an all hands on deck situation in an elimination game for the Guardians, with Williams giving them everything that he possibly can before turning the ball over to the bullpen on Saturday.
- David Shovein

Source: Zack Meisel

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Sonny Gray

BOS Starting Pitcher #54
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According to Alex Speier of the Boston Globe, Sonny Gray plans to continue pitching in 2027.

There had been some rumblings that the 37-year-old hurler was mulling retirement but ultimately, it became a relatively easy decision. Gray noted, “My family and I have talked about it and it’s an easy decision... I still want to win a World Series, whether that is [with] Boston or with whoever wants me.” He’s expected to decline his side of his $30 million mutual option with the Red Sox and should be very highly sought after in free agency this winter.
- David Shovein

Source: Alex Speier

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Josh Jung

TEX 3rd Baseman #6
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The Rangers announced Friday that Josh Jung will not require surgery to repair his fractured right hand.

Jung suffered a right-hand fracture during the final week of September when he was drilled by a 95-mph fastball from Joe Ryan. He’ll still need some time to recover, but it’s not expected to interfere with his regular off-season routine. Expect the 28-year-old infielder to be fully recovered and ready to go for the start of spring training.
- David Shovein

Source: Kennedi Landry

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Danny Jansen

TEX Catcher #9
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Danny Jansen underwent successful surgery on October 7 to remove a bone growth in his right hand.

The procedure isn’t expected to interfere with Jansen’s regular offseason routine, and the 31-year-old backstop should be ready to go for the start of spring training. Jansen slashed just .203/.296/.381 with eight homers and 26 RBI in 227 plate appearances with the Rangers during the 2026 campaign.
- David Shovein

Source: Kennedi Landry

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Corey Seager

TEX Shortstop #5
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Corey Seager underwent successful surgery on October 6 to remove a bone spur from his right elbow.

The 32-year-old shortstop will have plenty of time to recover from the procedure and still be ready for the start of spring training. While the elbow injury didn’t force him to miss any time in 2026, it may have played a role in his underwhelming .227/.312/.424 slash line.
- David Shovein

Source: Kennedi Landry

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