Esmerlyn Valdez knew he hit the ball hard, so he started rounding the bases for a base hit. The player nicknamed “The Magician” soon pulled off a disappearing act when it cleared the center field fence.
Not only did the Pittsburgh Pirates rookie outfielder hit his first home run at PNC Park but did so with his family in attendance. Celebrating in their seats were his mother, Betania Ramirez, his father, Alexis Valdez, and his brothers Alex, Elian and Albert Valdez, who made the trip from his native Dominican Republic.
“Unforgettable moment, for sure, with my family here,” said Valdez, who drew a bases-loaded walk in the fifth inning to finish with three RBIs in the 12-1 win over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night. “The opportunity the Pirates have given me to be in this position and, most important, we won a game as well as a team.”
Valdez sent a 2-2 slider from Cubs lefty Jordan Wicks 415 feet to left field at a 105.5-mph exit velocity for a two-run homer in the first inning to push the Pirates’ lead to 5-0. Valdez said it was the first time his mother had seen him play in person since the All-Star Futures Game last July at Truist Park, when he flied out to center for the final out of a 4-2 win by the National League.
“Big one on Sunday in Toronto, then today to extend the lead,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “He’s having great at-bats up there.”
The future is now for the 22-year-old Valdez, whose first hit of his major league career was a two-run homer in the sixth inning of Sunday’s 4-1 win at the Toronto Blue Jays.
Valdez became one of seven Pirates in the modern era (since 1901) to homer twice in their first four MLB games. The others were Walter Mueller (1922), Wally Westlake (1947), Dino Restelli (1949), Dick Stuart and RC Stevens (1958) and Austin Meadows (2018). Valdez also became the fourth Pirates player since at least 1900 to have at least each of his first two major league hits be home runs, joining Stuart and Craig Wilson (2001) – whose first two hits were homers – and Rodolfo Castro, whose first five hits were homers in 2021.
That the 6-foot-2, 234-pound Valdez possesses power was no secret. He hit 26 homers with 86 RBIs last season, split between High-A Greensboro and Double-A Altoona, then crushed eight homers with 27 RBIs in 19 games in the Arizona Fall League. Valdez homered 10 times in 46 games at Triple-A Indianapolis, including five over his final five games there before being promoted to the Pirates on Friday.
“Just a matter of me continuing to have fun, go out there and play my game,” Valdez said. “All of the guys when I got here, the first thing they told me is, ‘Enjoy the game and do your thing.’”
As much as Valdez enjoyed going deep, his most impressive play came in the field. He turned a Seiya Suzuki line drive to right field into a double play with a strong throw to third base to get Ian Happ out.
“It was incredible,” Valdez said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve thrown a guy out on the basepaths.”
Valdez is making the most of his opportunity by taking advantage of the absence of Ryan O’Hearn (strained right quadriceps) to get his first taste of the big leagues. Along with shortstop Konnor Griffin, outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia and pitchers Bubba Chandler, Brandan Bidois, Wilber Dotel and Evan Sisk, Valdez is among the rookies making a positive impact on the Pirates.
“There is an energy that comes with them, too, when you get guys that get up to the big leagues,” Kelly said. “Really cool for Valdez — his family was here today — to have that moment with them.”