Oakland Athletics: Has Danny Valencia Finally Found A More Permanent Home?
The Oakland Athletics decided Danny Valencia’s fate this offseason in one move – they traded Brett Lawrie. By dealing Lawrie to the Chicago White Sox, it pretty much guaranteed Valencia the starting third baseman position with the A’s in 2016.
Interestingly enough, Valencia has only been a starting infielder for an entire season just one other time in his five year MLB career. The last time he filled this role was back in 2011 with the Minnesota Twins. Now with the Athletics, Valencia will have the chance to prove himself as an everyday player once again. And, if Valencia is able to excel in this role with Oakland, he may have finally found a more permanent home team – something he has not had since the 2011 season.
Despite having a pretty consistent bat, Valencia has been traded from team to team starting back in 2012 due to a rumored attitude problem. First, the Twins sent Valencia to the Boston Red Sox in August 2012. Boston then traded him to the Baltimore Orioles during the 2012/2013 offseason who, in turn, sent him to the Kansas City Royals the very next year. The Royals had Valencia for the first month and a half of the season before trading him to the Toronto Blue Jays on July 28, 2014.
Then, in 2015, due to acquiring too many power players during the trade deadline, the Blue Jays had to designated Valencia for assignment in August. This allowed the A’s to snag Valencia off of waivers. Now, it looks as though the Athletics would like to keep him around as a possible long term solution at third base.
This past season, Valencia batted a respectable .290/.345/.519 with an .864 OPS. Additionally, he had a .980 fielding percentage and only made three errors. If he can continue to perform at this level, the A’s will likely keep him at third until he becomes a free agent in 2017. If he exceeds expectations, Oakland may even consider signing him to a contract before he hits free agency.
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If there is one ball club willing to give down and out players a chance, it is the Oakland Athletics. Valencia just has to prove that he deserves the starting third baseman role each and every season he wears green and gold. If he can perform, it is likely that Valencia will become a staple in the Athletics’ roster.