John Valente
Third baseman / Second baseman
Born: (1995-06-23) June 23, 1995
New Rochelle, New York
Bats: Switch
Throws: Right

John Valente (born June 23, 1995) is an Italian-American former professional baseball infielder and current assistant coach for St. John's.

Playing career

Valente attended New Rochelle High School in New Rochelle, New York, and St. John's University, where he played college baseball for the St. John's Red Storm. During the 2018 season, Valente was named the Big East Conference's Player of the Year, the first St. John's player to receive the award.[1] He led the league with a .363 batting average, and recorded a career high five home runs, 40 RBIs and 11 stolen bases, while striking out only nine times in 204 at-bats. He was also named a unanimous first-team All-Big East selection and a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award.[2][3] On May 10, 2018, he recorded his 200th career hit, becoming the 23rd player in program history to reach the milestone.[4] He helped lead the Red Storm to four winning seasons, three 40-win seasons, and a pair of Big East Championships. He finished his career at St. John's with a career batting average of .353, and 218 hits, which ranks 13th most in program history.[5][6]

The Detroit Tigers selected Valente in the 21st round, with the 615th overall selection, of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft.[7] During the 2021 season in 66 games with the Erie SeaWolves, Valente ranked among the team leaders with a .301 batting average, .363 on-base percentage and .808 on-base plus slugging (OPS) with 69 hits and 22 RBI.[8] On April 4, 2022, he was promoted to the Tigers' Triple-A affiliate, the Toledo Mud Hens.[9] During the 2022 season in 82 games with the Mud Hens, he posted career highs with 37 runs scored, 26 RBIs and 14 stolen bases, along with a .293/.355/.390 slash line.[6] On July 28, 2023, Valente retired from baseball.[10]

Coaching career

On August 31, 2023, Valente was named an assistant coach for St. John's University, where he will serve as hitting coach.[11]

International career

Vakente is a member of Italy national baseball team's roster at the 2023 World Baseball Classic.[12][13]

References

  1. ↑ Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (May 23, 2018). "Baseball: New Ro native John Valente named Big East player of the year". The Journal News. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Baseball Regular-Season Major Awards and All-Big East Teams Announced". bigeast.com. May 23, 2018. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  3. ↑ "John Valente Named a Finalist for the Senior CLASS Award". bigeast.com. April 24, 2018. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  4. ↑ "No. 17 St. John's Heads to New Jersey for Crucial Series with Seton Hall". redstormsports.com. May 10, 2018. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  5. ↑ "John Valente". redstormsports.com. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  6. 1 2 "Three Former Johnnies Named to 2023 World Baseball Classic Rosters". redstormsports.com. February 10, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  7. ↑ Mercogliano, Vincent Z. (June 6, 2018). "MLB Draft: Francisco Justo, Phil Capra, Brad Case, John Valente all picked on Day 3". The Journal News. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  8. ↑ Seidel, Jeff (June 29, 2021). "Johnny .300: Detroit Tigers' best prospect you don't know". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  9. ↑ Levine, Amanda (April 5, 2022). "Meet the 2022 Toledo Mud Hens' opening day players". The Blade. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  10. ↑ "John Valente retired". MILB.
  11. ↑ "John Valente Named Assistant Coach at St. John's". redstormsports.com. August 31, 2023. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Every World Baseball Classic 2023 team roster - which MLB stars will feature in the tournament?". olympics.com. February 27, 2023. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  13. ↑ Petzold, Evan (February 9, 2023). "Detroit Tigers have eight players slated for 2023 World Baseball Classic". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
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