The Orioles signed infielder Jesmuel Valentin to a minor league contract, per Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com (Twitter link). The Orioles’ Double-A affiliate in Bowie announced shortly thereafter that Valentin has been added to its roster.
Valentin, 24, made his big league debut with the Phillies in 2018 but received just 89 plate appearances. In that time, the switch-hitter managed only a .177/.258/.304 batting line with a homer, five doubles and a triple. Valentin, the No. 51 overall pick in the 2012 draft (by the Dodgers), is the son of former big leaguer Jose Valentin and the nephew of Javier Valentin.
The younger Valentin landed with the Phillies by way of the 2014 swap that sent right-hander Roberto Hernandez from Philadelphia to Los Angeles. He’s a versatile defender, with experience at second base, shortstop, third base and a brief look in both outfield corners, but he’s never established himself as much of an offensive threat. He’s a career .260/.345/.379 hitter in parts of seven minor league seasons, including a .239/.322/.339 output in 381 plate appearances at the Triple-A level.
I don’t believe that Valentin made his big league debut with the Orioles in 2018. Someone needs to edit that to make it correct.
I just checked. It was with the Phillies.
Correct. Early-morning brain fart typo. Thanks for that.
Does it really matter with this player ? We won’t probably ever hear about him again
@Matthew Heywood very unnecessary comment.
Not to be a pain but I think you meant he made his debut with the Phillies in 2018
Not being a pain at all. Silly typo on my part — especially considering the fact that I later noted he was with the Phillies and used a picture of him in a Phillies jersey for the image in our mobile app, haha.
Thanks for the heads up.
Valentin has talent. It would be nice to see him get more of an opportunity on the MLB level with the O’s,
Someone needs to be able to replace Villar once he’s traded. Gotta have options
Oh man. Imagine how bad this offense is going to be if you take Villar out.
It’s coming in a couple of months…
I would expect that’s the case. Still not a good thought.