Enmanuel Valdez

Valdez spent the last two seasons on Boston's carousel of second basemen. During his time with the organization, the lefty-hitting middle infielder showed pop potential, swatting 16 and 17 home runs between Triple-A and MLB in 2023 and 2024, respectively. Last season in the majors, he was better-than-average in hard-hit percentage (41.8), barrel percentage (9.2) and exit velocity (89.4). Those peripherals apparently intrigued the Pirates into giving up a minor-league reliever for Valdez, who joins a crowded infield. Nick Gonzalez finished out 2024 as the primary second baseman and entered camp as the putative starter in 2025. Read Past Outlooks