{"id":125382,"date":"2026-07-07T23:28:27","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T03:28:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=125382"},"modified":"2026-07-07T23:31:44","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T03:31:44","slug":"esmerlyn-valdezs-defense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2026\/07\/07\/esmerlyn-valdezs-defense\/","title":{"rendered":"Esmerlyn Valdez’s Defense Becoming Surprising Part of His Game"},"content":{"rendered":"

When the Pittsburgh Pirates called up top prospect Esmerlyn Valdez<\/a> this season, they were hoping to get a big power bat. He has given the Pirates what they need<\/a> on that front, and then some, after the Pirates gave him the opportunity<\/a> with other players injured. The outfield prospect already has a dozen extra-base hits over his first 83 MLB plate appearances. That includes six homers, five doubles, and a triple. He is slugging .649 and has an isolated slugging percentage of .338 over the small sample size of play. He is forcing himself into the Pirates’ lineup<\/a>.<\/p>\n

However, coming up through the minor leagues, Valdez was looked at as a bat-first prospect. He played corner outfield and first base, with some believing he’d eventually have to move to first base and designated hitter in the long run. However, based on his first handful of MLB games, Valdez’s defense has become a strong suit of his.<\/p>\n

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Esmerlyn Valdez’s Defense Has Looked Very Good<\/h2>\n

Valdez has just about 150 innings in the outfield. In that time, he has +1 defensive run saved and +2 outs above average. He has shown above-average speed, with a 71st percentile sprint speed (28.1 feet\/second). Valdez’s defense stats look good given the small sample size and a few good catches. He is getting very good jumps on flyballs at 35.1 feet. Valdez is covering more ground on his jump than Jackson Merrill<\/a>, Denzel Clarke<\/a>, Brenton Doyle<\/a>, and Mike Trout<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Esmerlyn Valdez throws out the runner at 3rd!<\/p>\n

An electric home debut for the @Pirates<\/a> rookie ?\u200d\u2620\ufe0f https:\/\/t.co\/LVSOssJeEo<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/561CJN31Wz<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 MLB (@MLB) May 26, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n