RADIO
Esmerlyn Valdez Leaves Early on Monday After Being Hit in Wrist Area
Pittsburgh Pirates rookie outfielder Esmerlyn Valdez (wrist) left Monday's game early against the Arizona Diamondbacks after he was hit by a pitch in the left wrist area in the fourth inning, according to Alex Stumpf of MLB.com. Before leaving the contest early, Valdez went 0-for-1 at the plate. He was replaced in right field by Tyler Callihan, who moved from first base. Valdez will almost certainly go for X-rays on his hand/wrist to determine if he's dealing with any cracked bones. The 22-year-old Dominican outfielder has burst onto the scene in the Steel City in 2026 in his first year in the big leagues, as he came into Monday's series opener with a .293/.385/.707 slash line, 1.092 OPS, 14 home runs, 36 RBI, and 26 runs scored in 37 games across 143 plate appearances. His strong start to his MLB career has earned him an everyday role and has made him one of the most popular recent waiver-wire pickups in fantasy baseball leagues. For now, we'll consider Valdez day-to-day until we know more about his hand/wrist injury.
Source: MLB.com - Alex Stumpf
Source: MLB.com - Alex Stumpf
