BOSTON -- Enmanuel Valdez heated up on Saturday at Fenway Park, and his timing couldn’t have been better.

A two-homer performance that included a double, three RBIs and a heads-up baserunning play to score on a sacrifice fly to shallow left came on a day Vaughn Grissom injured his right hamstring.

While Valdez started at DH in a 6-3 win by the Red Sox over the Tigers, he is likely the next man up to replace Grissom, who almost certainly will require another stint on the 10-day injured list.

Grissom, who missed the first 32 games of this season while recovering from a left hamstring strain, injured the other hammy while trying to beat out a grounder in the bottom of the second inning. The right-handed hitter was hobbling as he reached first base, and was replaced in the field by Connor Wong to start the third inning.

“[Valdez] was our starting second baseman early in the season. We liked the way he played defense, too, early in the season,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “So we'll see where we’re at. We’re going to meet now and go over a few things, and then we’ll decide what we’re going to do.”

Valdez had been recalled by the Red Sox on Wednesday when Tyler O’Neill had to go on the injured list with right knee inflammation. Saturday marked his first appearance in the starting lineup in the four days he’s been back with the club.

The left-handed hitter announced his presence with authority, unloading for a solo homer to right that left his bat at 106.4 mph and traveled a projected distance of 399 feet, landing in the Boston bullpen in right-center.

“Today was one of those days I wasn't trying to do too much,” said Valdez. “Like you all know, I had a slow start [before getting optioned to Triple-A]. For me to be able to put the ball in play and hit the ball hard was big.”

While Valdez tied the game with his shot in the second, he helped his team extend the lead in the fourth by taking advantage of the friendly Green Monster with a leadoff double that had an expected batting average of .140. And after moving to third on a fielder’s choice, Valdez made a strong read on Reese McGuire’s 214-foot foul flyout that Riley Greene made a great play on against the railing. When Greene fell down, Valdez tagged up and roared home to make it a 3-1 game.

“I was watching the play all along and saw the player tumble down so that’s when I decided to take off,” said Valdez. “And that’s one at-bat less for Reese [in the stats] and one more RBI for him. And for me to be able to help him and help the team win, that’s what I want to do every time I get the opportunity to play.”

Perhaps Valdez earned the good fortune he got in the bottom of the sixth when he wrapped one around Pesky’s Pole at an exit velocity of 86.5 mph at a projected distance of 318 feet for a two-run homer that had an expected batting average of .050 and wouldn’t have been a home run in any of MLB’s 29 other ballparks.

“I think I’ve also been hitting the ball hard, over 100 mph, and they’ve been caught,” Valdez said. “To be able to get away with one was great.”

Injuries have been a prevailing storyline for a Boston team that has withstood its barrage of medical maladies fairly well, improving to 30-29 with Saturday’s victory.

Valdez was optioned to Triple-A on May 2, one day before Grissom made his delayed debut. The Red Sox acquired Valdez and emerging rookie Wilyer Abreu at the 2022 Trade Deadline in the deal that sent Christian Vázquez to the Astros.

That trade -- made by former Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom -- appears to be a clear win.

“Valdy’s a good player. He puts together good at-bats,” said Cora. “And like I said when we sent him down, he didn't do anything wrong. He played well. When you look at numbers, he’s hitting .180, and it doesn’t feel that way. He manages the at-bat just like Wilyer and he worked on a few things down there as far as timing and staying closed and not flying open.”

While Valdez is no longer flying open, second base appears to be open, at least for the foreseeable future, and he looks ready to pounce on the opportunity.