| Enmanuel Valdez | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Valdez with the Red Sox in 2024 | |
| Pittsburgh Pirates – No. 48 | |
| Infielder | |
| Born: (1998-12-28)December 28, 1998 (age 26) San Juan de la Maguana,Dominican Republic | |
Bats: Left Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 19, 2023, for the Boston Red Sox | |
| MLB statistics (through 2024 season) | |
| Batting average | .235 |
| Home runs | 12 |
| Runs batted in | 47 |
| Teams | |
Enmanuel Valdez (born December 28, 1998) is a Dominican professionalbaseballinfielder for thePittsburgh Pirates ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for theBoston Red Sox, with whom he made his MLB debut with in 2023.
Valdez signed with theHouston Astros as an international free agent on July 2, 2015.[1] He made his professional debut in 2016 with theDominican Summer League Astros.[2] He played 2017 with theGulf Coast League Astros andGreeneville Astros, 2018 with theTri-City ValleyCats, and 2019 with theQuad Cities River Bandits andFayetteville Woodpeckers.[2]
Valdez did not play in 2020 due to cancellation of the minor league season because of theCOVID-19 pandemic.[3] He returned in 2021 to play for theAsheville Tourists andCorpus Christi Hooks.[2] He started 2022 inDouble-A with Corpus Christi.[4] and was later promoted to theSugar Land Space Cowboys ofTriple-A.[2]
On August 1, 2022, Valdez andWilyer Abreu were traded to theBoston Red Sox in exchange forChristian Vázquez.[5] Valdez finished the season with the Triple-AWorcester Red Sox.[2]
On November 10, 2022, the Red Sox added Valdez to their40-man roster to protect him from theRule 5 draft.[6] During the offseason, he played in theDominican Winter League forToros del Este.[2] He was optioned to Worcester to begin the 2023 season.[7]
On April 19, 2023, Valdez was promoted to the major leagues for the first time afterYu Chang was placed on the paternity list.[8] Valdez made his MLB debut that evening, against theMinnesota Twins, and recorded two hits.[9] He was optioned back to Worcester the next day,[10] then recalled on April 25 when Chang went on the injured list due to a hand injury.[11] Valdez remained with the Red Sox until being optioned back to Worcester on June 9.[12] He was recalled to Boston on September 1, when major-league rosters expanded to 28 players, optioned back on September 12, and recalled again on September 22.[13]
Valdez made 76 appearances for Boston in 2024, slashing .214/.270/.363 with six home runs and 28 RBI. On December 11, 2024, Valdez wasdesignated for assignment by the Red Sox.[14]
On December 15, 2024, Valdez was traded to thePittsburgh Pirates in exchange for Joe Vogatsky.[15][16] He was optioned to the Triple-AIndianapolis Indians to begin the 2025 season.[17]