Danny Valencia is Twins' lovable loudmouth

Early in spring training, Twins third baseman Danny Valencia tweeted, “My loungin’ shirt!” A quick click, and there was a photo of a t-shirt with the inscription “The ‘U’ invented swagger.”

The “U,” of course, is the University of Miami, Valencia’s alma mater. And swagger, of course, is about the last thing you’d expect from those bastions of Midwest sensibility and baseball humility, the Twins.

Needless to say, Valencia’s college roommate, Indians closer Chris Perez, was not surprised to learn that as a rookie, Valencia was the most heavily fined Twin in kangaroo court last season.

“I can imagine, especially with that team,” Perez said, chuckling. “They are exact opposites, (with) the way the Twins are. They don’t really rock the boat, and then to have him come along; yeah, it’s definitely a different style.”

The Twins are not as staid as they might appear — manager Ron Gardenhire has one of the game’s quicker wits, and right fielder Michael Cuddyer says “it’s a very light-hearted group in here, actually.”

But Valencia, 26, is indeed something of a novelty for the club, a combination of brass and flash from Boca Raton, Fla.

“You hear before you see him,” Perez says.

Cardinals outfielder Jon Jay, another former UM teammate of Valencia’s, describes him as “one of a kind.”

A third former Hurricane, Marlins first baseman Gaby Sanchez, nodded and agreed.

“When I first met him, I was like, 'Who the heck are you? What is wrong with you?' ” Sanchez said. “But once you start to talk to him, once you get to know him, he’s a good kid, he really is. He means well in everything he does. He’s just one of those guys who is very outspoken.”

The most outrageous remark that Sanchez can recall hearing from Valencia?

“He’s like a Yogi Berra,” Sanchez says. “I don’t think you can pick out just one thing.”

The Twins can’t, either.

Cuddyer, when asked why Valencia is such a popular clubhouse target — Is it his bright-lights personality? Is it for being a knucklehead? — grinned and said, “Those two go hand in hand.

“He definitely is learning, let’s leave it at that,” Cuddyer said. “He talks. He definitely talks. But he’s doing well.”

Valencia freely acknowledges that of all the Twins players, “I get the most heat.”

Why? He smiled broadly.

“Because they love me.”

Actually, Valencia is rather lovable. He might talk, but he backs it up. To the Twins, that is all that matters.

Valencia joined the club last June 3 and immediately stabilized third base, a position that the Twins had filled in recent seasons with players such as Nick Punto, Joe Crede, Brian Buscher and Mike Lamb.

In 85 games Valencia batted .311/.351/.448 with seven homers and 40 RBIs. However, Gardenhire was perhaps even more impressed by how Valencia handled himself defensively.

“I like that when he first came up and I was taking him out for defense late in the games, he got pissed,” Gardenhire said. “He started taking more groundballs. He made himself a good fielder. He just kept working. That says a lot about him.”

And Valencia’s persona?

“Obviously, the guys give him a lot of grief. They say, ‘You’ve just got to understand, Danny loves Danny,’” Gardenhire said. “But honestly, he fits in well.

“He doesn’t mind taking the grief. I think he enjoys it. I think he lives for it.”

Valencia says he didn’t mind when, just prior to his major-league debut, first baseman Justin Morneau hung a No. 79 jersey in his locker rather than his usual No. 19. He also didn’t mind paying repeated fines for his numerous convictions in kangaroo court.

“They were getting me for the little things, hitting me up for not wearing socks on the plane, little ticky-tack things,” Valencia said. “It was all in good fun. Me and (catcher) Drew Butera ended up financing the team party at the end of the year. It went to a good cause.”

Valencia was only a 19th-round draft pick in 2006, the 576th player chosen. Rays third baseman Evan Longoria was the third overall pick that year. The Royals’ Alex Gordon, Nationals’ Ryan Zimmerman and Brewers’ Ryan Braun — who was a year ahead of Valencia at Miami — went second, fourth and fifth overall in ’05.

Braun’s departure enabled Valencia to move from first base to third for his junior year. Valencia hit a grand slam against Mississippi to lift Miami into the College World Series, but still barely registered with major-league clubs.

“He always had a chip on his shoulder, not going as high in the draft as he wanted to,” the Cardinals’ Jay said.

Yet Valencia never lost faith in himself, even as it took him nearly four years to climb through the minors.

“You’ve got to think you’re the best,” Valencia says. “If you don’t have the confidence to believe that you’re the best, who’s going to believe?”
Perez, who recalls watching “Entourage” and playing video games with Valencia at Miami, said, “I don’t think Danny would be where he’s at without that personality.”

But even Perez’s tolerance has its limits.

“He would always tell me, ‘I hit a home run off this guy, off that guy,’” the Indians’ closer said. “Last year after he got called up, he said he was going to hit a home run off me, and I struck him out on four pitches. He talks the game always.”

Valencia volunteered a similar memory of the matchup, then said, “But you don’t have to write about that.”

Too late, but not to worry.

Valencia can take the heat, on and off the field.



(msnfoxposrts.com)