Boston Red Sox prospect Enmanuel Valdez has displayed some flashes of power since joining the organization.
The newest slugger in the farm system has blasted two home runs and has six RBIs in six games, including a solo shot in his first game in the Red Sox organization. The 5-foot-9, 191-pound prospect comes with a lot more pop in his bat than his size would indicate.
In a breakout season between Double-A and Triple-A, Valdez is hitting .318 with 26 doubles, one triple, 23 home runs, 83 RBIs and a 1.001 OPS in 88 games.
His successes this season caught the eye of Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, who parted ways with catcher Christian Vázquez in exchange for Valdez and fellow prospect Wilyer Abreu from the Houston Astros organization.
Bloom explained how he set the bar high to sell players at the Major League Baseball trade deadline, and the Astros were the only team to surpass the threshold set for trading an impending free agent. In other words, Boston’s front office appears to have lofty expectations for Valdez and Abreu, who rank No. 28 and No. 29, respectively, among the Red Sox’s top 30 prospects.
While the 23-year-old prospect has played every position except for pitcher and centerfield, he’s much better with a bat than a glove, as indicated by his impressive offensive numbers. Valdez has spent most of his pro career splitting time between second and third base, which is where the WooSox have been playing him with five starts at second and one a third).
Should his display of power continue, Valdez could factor into Boston’s plans at the major league level in no time.
