Twins: Punto focused on making a name for himself

To move forward, Twins infielder Nick Punto spent this past offseason looking back at his career.

He thought about his injuries. The lack of production. The time on the bench. Forever a utility player?

He didn't like what he was becoming, so he became something else.

Punto embraced a position at which he didn't have much experience, became a hitter who has boosted the top of the Twins order and a teammate who is staying on the field despite a left knee that has flared up twice on him this season.

"It was getting to that point in my career where it was time to establish myself or just be a backup for the rest of my career," Punto said. "I'm not getting any younger. I'm 28 years old. Players who were coming up are 22, 23 years old. It was time to do something."

Punto enters tonight's game against Kansas City batting .312 with a .390 on-base percentage and a career-high 14 stolen bases. He's been called "Ty Cobb Punto" and "Nick Rose" by White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen for how he's tormented Chicago this season.

Punto is currently the Twins third baseman, a position he previously played only 23 times in his career, a position normally for power and RBI guys, but a position Punto has seized to prove he's an everyday player.

"He's been fantastic," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "As far as being a spark plug, playing the game, all the things we like to see. Him running the bases, taking the extra base.

"He typifies the way we like to play the game."

A healthy change

Punto's emergence can be linked to his willingness to change -- and the willingness of others to change him.

In 2005, Punto was placed on the disabled list because of a strained right hamstring. In 2004, Punto suffered from a strained left oblique and later broke his collarbone. There's other ailments mixed in there, too.

To build a better body, Punto joined a growing list of athletes who have turned to Pilates and yoga to help build core strength.

Punto went to a gym in his offseason home in Scottsdale, Ariz., twice a week for yoga and twice a week for Pilates.

"It might sound sissy, but I'm in there every other day in that yoga class with 13 women," Punto said. "There's not too many men that do it, but I swear by it. I think every athlete needs it."

Punto played in 112 games all of last season but has played in 102 games already this season, missing only a handful of games when his knee bothered him during the last homestand.

"I've always struggled to stay on the field, whether it was a groin or a hamstring," he said. "The muscles all feel good now."

Being healthy gets you on the field, but production certainly can keep you out there. That's where Twins great Rod Carew and Twins "director of chemistry" Mike Redmond come in.

When pitchers and catchers reported for spring training in February, Carew approached Punto with a copy of his stats.

"He had everything," Punto said. "They were all highlighted, my runs, my strikeouts, on-base percentage, walks. It kind of hits home when a Hall of Famer walks up to you with your stats and throws them in your face."

Punto worked with Carew on putting the ball in play so he can use his speed. Hitting coach Joe Vavra has continued the lessons. Punto now sprays the ball to all fields and gets on base for the middle of the batting order. He's had a few big hits, like his game-winning RBI on Saturday against the White Sox that he called one of the biggest of his career.

Motivating factors

Redmond, who dresses next to Punto in the Twins' clubhouse, provides motivation, especially when Punto is thinking about taking a day off to rest a bruise. Redmond wants to know what hurts, how bad and, finally, why can't he play anyway.

"He's been my one project, that's for sure," Redmond said. "I've always been a firm believer in grinding it out. Teams I've been on that have won, the guys who are supposed to play, play."

Redmond also jokes with Punto, catching him off-guard when he comes out of the shower by yelling, "Nicky! I love it when your shirt is off!"He doesn't let me get down," Punto said. "If I'm having a bad day, he snaps me right out of it."

The opportunity came in June when the Twins released Tony Batista and gave Punto a chance to take the job and run with it.

And that's what Punto's done. Now he's a regular who's forcing observers such as Guillen to playfully link him to all-time greats.

It's better to be linked to Ty Cobb than former Twins utility player Denny Hocking.

"I was thinking when I got that shot that I wasn't going to let them take me out of the lineup," Punto said. "It's kind of the mind-set you have to have if you want to play every day."

La Velle E. Neal III • lneal@startribune.com