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PITTSBURGH -- Infielder/outfielder Enmanuel Valdez was acquired by the Pittsburgh Pirates from the Boston Red Sox on Sunday for minor league right-hander Joe Vogatsky.
Valdez hit .214 with six homers and 28 RBIs in 65 games last season during four stints with the Red Sox. He batted .233 with 11 homers and 30 RBIs in 50 games with Triple-A Worcester.
The left-handed-hitting 25-year-old made his big league debut on April 19, 2023, and was on Boston's 2024 opening-day roster. He was designated for assignment on Wednesday when Boston acquired left-hander Garrett Crochet from the Chicago White Sox.
Valdez was signed by Houston in 2015 and traded to Boston on Aug. 1, 2022, with outfielder Wilyer Abreu for catcher Christian Vázquez.
The 22-yeare-old Vogatsky was a 19th-round pick in this year's amateur draft from James Madison.
Freeman ball sells
LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. -- Freddie Freeman's historic walk-off grand slam ball from Game 1 of the World Series has sold for $1.56 million at auction.
The bidding at SCP Auctions went into the late hours of Saturday night, according to a statement from the auction house on Sunday. It didn't say who bought the ball.
Freeman, the Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman, came to the plate on a sprained right ankle with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning against the New York Yankees. He hit the first pitch from Nestor Cortes 413 feet for the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history.
The Dodgers won the game 6-3 and went on to claim the franchise's eighth World Series championship in five games. Freeman was named World Series MVP.
The ball landed in the right-field pavilion, where it was corralled by 10-year-old Zachary Ruderman, who lives in Los Angeles. The ball rolled from the seat in front of him to his feet and he batted it to his father, Nico, who jumped on it.
The fifth-grader had been told he was leaving school early that day to get his braces removed. Instead, his parents took him to Dodger Stadium.
It's the second ball connected to the Dodgers to be auctioned this season. The ball hit by Shohei Ohtani that made him the first player in major league history with at least 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season sold for nearly $4.4 million. It set a record for the sale of any sports ball.
Athletics get pitcher
The Athletics are building a new-look rotation for their big move to Sacramento.
The A's added to their pitching depth on Saturday, acquiring Jeffrey Springs in a multiplayer trade with the Tampa Bay Rays.
The A's also received fellow left-hander Jacob Lopez from Tampa Bay in exchange for right-handers Joe Boyle and Jacob Watters, infielder Will Simpson and a competitive balance pick in the 2025 amateur draft.
The addition of Springs is another notable move for the A's ahead of their first season in West Sacramento. They are planning to play at Sutter Health Park for the next three years before they hope to move into a new stadium in Las Vegas.
The A's finalized a $67 million, three-year contract with veteran right-hander Luis Severino this month.
The A's went 69-93 this year, and then left Oakland after 57 seasons.