Is a Futures Game crown next for this Bucs prospect?

This story was excerpted from Alex Stumpf’s Pirates Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

ALTOONA, Pa. -- There are two small tattoos just below the outer part of Esmerlyn Valdez’s right wrist, both small enough that they might not show up when the new Altoona Curve slugger comes to bat on a broadcast or when he reposts his highlights to social media.

One tattoo just says “2004” -- the year he was born. The other is a simple black outline of a crown.

“I just like it because [I feel] like the king,” Valdez said, with teammate Omar Alfonzo interpreting.

Valdez should feel like he’s at the top of the heap right now. The 21-year-old outfielder/first baseman dominated with High-A Greensboro, slashing .303/.385/.592 with 20 home runs and 57 RBIs. His 53 total bases and 14 extra-base hits in June were the most in the South Atlantic League, and his 20 home runs on the season led the league.

That performance led to a whirlwind of good news this week. He was promoted to Double-A Altoona. He cracked MLB Pipeline’s list of the Pirates’ top prospects, now at No. 16 after Mike Burrows graduated from the rankings.

And most notably, Valdez got the nod that he will be one of the two Pirates representatives at this year’s All-Star Futures Game, which will take place July 12 at Truist Park. Shortstop/outfielder Konnor Griffin will be joining him in Atlanta.

“I feel very blessed and very excited because I’m going to represent the Pirates in the Futures Game,” Valdez said.

Valdez signed with the Pirates as an international free agent when the signing period opened in January 2021, but he was hardly the most notable prospect of his class at that time. He didn’t gain much traction as a pro early, barely cracking Single-A Bradenton before the end of the 2023 season.

He showed some promise last year with Bradenton, clubbing 22 home runs, but a 30.6% strikeout rate weighed down his overall production. He still earned a promotion to Greensboro this year, where things really started to take off in what could be a breakout campaign. The strikeout rate has dipped to below 25%, and the quality of contact has improved, leading to some towering home runs and line drives to all fields.

Some of that success can be attributed to the drill work he does in the cage. Some of it has to do with making sure his wide stance is in a good spot. Some of it is making sure he is throwing his top hand to the middle of the field when he’s taking a cut.

But one of the biggest changes is just learning how to breathe better during at-bats. At some point in just about every at-bat that goes more than a few pitches, he’ll call time, look at his bat, find the logo on his lumber and just breathe.

“It’s like a reset,” Valdez said. “That’s what’s working for me.”

Valdez has always had a healthy walk rate, sitting around 10% this year, but he has grown more patient at the plate with those breathing exercises. That’s led to fewer strikeouts, but also just better at-bats when he does put the ball in play. That is evident in him raising his contact rate to 72.3% after it was below 60% every season before 2024.

“That was the main focus for me this year,” Valdez said. “[The] mental performance staff with the Pirates is helping me a lot this year.”

Time will tell if this is indeed Valdez’s breakout, but this performance is coming at an opportune time. He’s eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this winter if the Pirates do not add him to the roster, and he’s making quite the case for himself this season.

That decision is still months away, though. For now, the next thing for Valdez is to hold court in Atlanta and show what he can do against the game’s top prospects.