BRADENTON, FLA. - After Twins third baseman Danny Valencia had RBI doubles in his first two at-bats on Wednesday, manager Ron Gardenhire gave him the option of coming out of the game or getting one more at-bat.
"Yeah, yeah I feel really good. I got this guy," Valencia said to Gardenhire.
Valencia dug in against Pittsburgh Pirates righthander Mike Crotta in the fifth.
"It was a quick four pitches," Valencia said. "The only pitch I swung at nearly hit me in the stomach."
Valencia took strike three, ending the inning. The Twins went on to win 4-2, but Gardenhire won't let Valencia, who is not short on confidence, forget his last at-bat.
"Now he's in there [the clubhouse] eating chicken, thinking about his last at-bat," Gardenhire said.
Valencia was called up last season and finished with a .311 average, seven homers and 40 RBI in 85 games. The Twins might finally have their long-term answer at third --which means Gardenhire might get plenty of chances to ride Valencia in the coming years.
Valencia drove a ball over left fielder Jose Tabata in the first to drive in Ben Revere. He then blasted one in the gap in the third, scoring Trevor Plouffe.
