Danny Valencia
(MLB.com)
By Scott Barancik, editor
Danny Valencia has seen limited playing time this season, starting just 22 of Toronto’s 75 games through Friday (6/27/2015), and only now reaching 100 at-bats. But research by Jewish Baseball News suggests Toronto manager John Gibbons couldn’t ask for much more from a utility/platoon player.
To try to capture the universe of utility/platoon players, we looked at MLB players who had accumulated fewer than 200 at-bats thru 6/26/2015. An overbroad grouping, to be sure, but it was the best we could come up with on the spot.
So how is the 30-year-old Valencia doing when measured against this group?
Among A.L. and N.L. players with 75 to 200 at-bats through Friday, the 30-year-old Miami native’s .330 average ranked second only to teammate Chris Colabello, who’s not really a utility/platoon player. (Since his call-up from Triple-A a month into the season, Colabello has started 45 of Toronto’s 48 games.)
MLB: Batting average leaders with 75-to-200 at-bats (thru 6/26/2015)
| Rank | Player | AB | BA |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chris Colabello | 175 | .343 |
| 2 | Danny Valencia | 100 | .330 |
| 3 | Joey Butler | 163 | .325 |
| 4 | David Murphy | 145 | .324 |
| 5 | Jacoby Ellsbury | 148 | .324 |
| 6 | Yonder Alonso | 168 | .321 |
| 7 | Yasmany Tomas | 196 | .316 |
| 8 | Justin Turner | 174 | .316 |
| 9 | Yasiel Puig | 107 | .308 |
| 10 | Mitch Moreland | 196 | .306 |
| 11 | Josh Phegley | 95 | .305 |
| 12 | Nick Hundley | 194 | .304 |
| 13 | Maikel Franco | 152 | .303 |
| 14 | Matt Holliday | 178 | .303 |
| 15 | Francisco Cervelli | 192 | .302 |
| 16 | Brandon Barnes | 106 | .302 |
| 17 | Ezequiel Carrera | 100 | .300 |
Valencia ranks high in RBI productivity. At one RBI per 4.76 at-bats, he trailed only L.A.’s Justin Turner and Baltimore’s Matt Wieters as of Friday.
MLB: RBI productivity leaders with 200 or fewer at-bats (thru 6/26/2015)
| Rank | Player | AB | RBI | ABs per RBI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justin Turner | 174 | 35 | 4.97 |
| 2 | Matt Wieters | 48 | 10 | 4.80 |
| 3 | Danny Valencia | 100 | 21 | 4.76 |
| 4 | Alex Guerrero | 141 | 30 | 4.70 |
| 5 | Travis d'Arnaud | 71 | 17 | 4.18 |
| 6 | Bryan Holaday | 44 | 12 | 3.67 |
Valencia also has shown impressive power. In 100 at-bats, he’s hit 4 HRs and 11 doubles, good enough for a .560 slugging percentage.
MLB: Slugging leaders with 75-to-200 at-bats (thru 6/26/2015)
| Rank | Player | AB | SLG |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maikel Franco | 152 | .572 |
| 2 | Justin Turner | 174 | .569 |
| 3 | Josh Phegley | 95 | .568 |
| 4 | Danny Valencia | 100 | .560 |
| 5 | Randal Grichuk | 136 | .559 |
| 6 | Alex Guerrero | 141 | .546 |
| 7 | Ryan Raburn | 107 | .542 |
| 8 | Ben Paulsen | 109 | .532 |
| 9 | Chris Colabello | 175 | .514 |
| 10 | Carlos Correa | 78 | .513 |
| 11 | Corey Dickerson | 127 | .512 |
| 12 | Mitch Moreland | 196 | .510 |
| 13 | Eduardo Nunez | 89 | .506 |
Though not considered a high-level fielder, Valencia is versatile, having played five positions so far in 2015. And he hasn’t made a single error at any of them.
The NBA has its Sixth Man of the Year award. If the MLB had a 10th Man award, Danny Valencia would be a top candidate this season.
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