| Eric Valent | |
|---|---|
| Outfielder | |
| Born: (1977-04-04)April 4, 1977 (age 47) La Mirada, California, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
| Professional debut | |
| MLB: June 8, 2001, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
| NPB: June 19, 2006, for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles | |
| Last appearance | |
| MLB: May 27, 2005, for the New York Mets | |
| NPB: September 5, 2006, for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .234 |
| Home runs | 13 |
| Runs batted in | 37 |
| NPB statistics | |
| Batting average | .189 |
| Home runs | 1 |
| Runs batted in | 5 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
Medals | |
Eric Christian Valent (born April 4, 1977), is an American former professionalbaseballoutfielder, who played inMajor League Baseball (MLB) for thePhiladelphia Phillies,Cincinnati Reds, andNew York Mets. Valent is currently the National Cross Checker in theMiami Marlins organization.
Valent was an All-American atCanyon High School inAnaheim, California. On June 1, 1995, he was drafted in the 26th round of theamateur draft by theDetroit Tigers, but he did not sign and instead elected to attend theUniversity of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Valent had a standout career at UCLA, alongside teammatesTroy Glaus,Eric Byrnes,Chase Utley, andGarrett Atkins. He helped leadUCLA to the 1997College World Series.
Valent has the most careerhome runs inPac-10 history (69), and is the UCLA careerruns batted in (RBI) leader (219), achieved in only three years of play.[1]
Valent was the Pac-10 Player of the year in 1998. On June 2, 1998, he was selected in the first round (42nd overall) of the supplemental draft by the Phillies.
Of his collegiate career, Valent perhaps prophetically said:
College baseball was fun, but it's a little deceiving because of the aluminum bats. If you hit home runs in college, you aren't necessarily going to hit them as a professional.[1]
In 1996, he playedcollegiate summer baseball with theCotuit Kettleers of the wood batCape Cod Baseball League.[2]
In his brief playing career, Valent provided good power from the left side of the plate. A solidpinch hitter and valuableutility man, he was a competentfirst baseman who could play eitherleft orright field effectively.
On August 31, 2003, Valent was traded to the Cincinnati Reds forcatcherKelly Stinnett.
On December 15, Valent was drafted by the New York Mets in theRule 5 draft.
Most of Valent's MLB playing time was with the Mets. On July 29, 2004, he became the eighth player in Mets history tohit for the cycle, in a game against theMontreal Expos. In late August, Valent had threepinch-hit home runs. During his days with the Mets, he wore uniform number 57 (later worn by pitcherJohan Santana).
On January 12, 2006, Valent was signed as a free agent by theSan Diego Padres, but was released on May 14, after playing in 30 games for theirTriple-A farm club, thePortland Beavers.
In a four-season career, Valent was a .234hitter, with 13 home runs, and 37 RBIs, in 205games.[3]
After being released from the Padres organization, Valent signed a one-year contract worth 50 million Yen to play right field for theTohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in thePacific League ofNippon Professional Baseball (NPB).[4]
In December 2008, Valent was named the hitting coach for the Single-AWilliamsport Crosscutters of the Philadelphia Phillies organization,[5] but was reassigned to a scouting position in January2009.[6]
| Achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Hitting for the cycle July 29, 2004 | Succeeded by |
