Pirates add former top prospect as infield depth in trade with Red Sox

Entering the offseason, the Pirates desperately needed to improve their team, and Ben Cherington hinted that they would rely on trades to accomplish that. He is proving to be a man of his word, as the Pirates just acquired Spencer Horwitz at the Winter Meetings, and have now made another trade with the Boston Red Sox to pick up a player at the margins.

This time around, the Pirates acquired utility man Enmanuel Valdez from the Red Sox in exchange for right-handed pitcher Joe Vogatsky. This marks the second one-for-one deal between the two teams this year.

Red Sox send Enmanuel Valdez to Pirates in exchange for Joe Vogatsky.

With this acquisition, the Pirates now have 37 players on the 40-man roster, which could mean they view Valdez as a filler. With Nick Gonzales and Isiah Kiner-Falefa commanding the middle infield, it is likely Valdez plays in Triple-A, but is available on the 40-man in the event of an injury. Nick Yorke and Alika Williams standout as the backups up the middle, but Valdez has a left-handed power bat, which was much needed for the Pirates' depth at those positions.

Last season, Valdez got an opportunity in Boston, appearing in 76 games. Although he struggled a bit, he displayed some power, belting six home runs and 12 doubles to generate a slugging percentage of .363. That paired with an on-base percentage of .270 to generate an OPS of .633, which is not great. His wRC+ was below average at 72 and he struck out at a 23.8% rate.

Some positives that come with Valdez offensively include his average exit velocity of 89.4 miles per hour, a barrel rate of 9.2%, a hard hit clip of 41.8%, and a whiff percentage of just 22.1%.

Valdez should be a solid depth piece in Indianapolis, but Pirates fans should not be too upset with the cost of him. They gave up their 19th-round pick from 2024 in Vogatsky. He has yet to make an appearance in professional baseball as he was shut down after a long season with James Madison University.

Overall, this looks like a solid trade for the Pirates. They get a left -handed hitting infielder that will serve as a depth option in Indianapolis for the price of a late-round draft pick. Valdez was a much-needed addition to the 40 man roster, and has some potential, as he was a former top prospect in the Red Sox farm system after coming over from Houston in the Christian Vázquez swap (alongside Wilyer Abreu).