Javy’s wife, Ingrid, acted as a runway model for the Reds’ new line of merchandise during Redsfest 2006. She’s a very good looking woman: being a Latin Love Machine must go a long way with the ladies.

Javy’s wife, Ingrid, acted as a runway model for the Reds’ new line of merchandise during Redsfest 2006. She’s a very good looking woman: being a Latin Love Machine must go a long way with the ladies.

Player Profile on mlb.com.

Javier Valentí­n in Wikipedia.

Valentin thrilled to play in WBC in Cincinnati Enquirer

Parents of Major Leaguers Javier and Jose Valentin Chosen as Little League Parents of the Year on Little League Online

Due any day in the Cincinnati Post

Fathers loom large in Reds’ memories in the Cincinnati Post

Jose Javier Valentí­n was born September 19, 1975 in Manatí­, Puerto Rico. He graduated from Fernando Callejo High School in Manatí­ and still lives there with his wife Ingrid and their two children. Javy reported late to spring training in 2006 to attend the birth of his second child.

Javy was proud to represent Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic with his brother, Jose Antonio Valentí­n, third baseman for the New York Mets. Their father, surprisingly also named Jose, beamed with pride.

The LLM is involved with the Little League organization by way of his parents. Jose Sr. and Yolanda were selected as the Little League Parents of the Year in 2005. Javy credits his father with his baseball involvement. Discussing the 1990 series, he talks about how his father supported his and his brother’s interest in the sport:

“In the playoffs,” said the Cincinnati catcher, “my dad, my brother and I, we always picked out a team. My brother got the Cincinnati Reds that year and he beat me in four straight. If my dad’s team lost, he’d take the winner and buy us a bat or shoes or anything we wanted.”

The senior Valentí­n had been a player on the Puerto Rican team and is currently, a coach. He took Javy’s team to the Little League Junior World Series championship. Javy’s mother is also heavily involved in the Little League cause, as evidenced by being included in the Parents of the Year award.

Outside of being a short little slugger, a smart ballplayer, and an awesome all-around guy, Javy is well-known for his signature moustache. Some have been known to imply that it’s a porno mustache, but here at RHM, we’d never say a thing like that.

Javier Valentí­n is the Reds’ switch-hitting back-up catcher. He’ll put in occasional time at first base, which isn’t ideal because his profile generously lists him at 5′ 10″, and the Reds infield really needs a bigger target than that. I’ve read that Javy has also put in the odd appearance at third, which just sounds amusing to me.

Of course, all of that is secondary to Javy’s most important role of “Latin Love Machine.” “LLM” for short. Which he is.

The LLM is a solid little hitter, especially left-handed, with way more power than you’d expect from a guy his size. Against Colorado, he once hit a grand-slam left-handed and a three-run home run right-handed in the same game. He was the first Red to hit a home run from each side of the plate since Pete Rose did it in 1967 and the first Red with seven RBI in a game since Robin Jennings did it in 2001. Look for the bat he used in the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum.

Javy got so hot in 2005 that he essentially shook the back-up tag and worked his way into a platoon. He then combined with Jason LaRue to become the best offensive catching tandem in the majors. Together they hit .268 with 28 home runs and 110 RBI.

Even with Jason LaRue out the first couple weeks of 2006, no one was concerned that the catching position wouldn’t be well-manned the majority of the time while he was gone. Behind the plate, Javy is an adequate catcher who holds his own calling games and managing the pitchers. He doesn’t let a particularly high number of pitches go past him and he’s perfectly capable of throwing out an errant runner.

As a base runner, the LLM is among the slower Reds you’ll see, but he’s a smart all-around player and probably won’t disappoint you with his running ability.

You can check out the actual statistics on Javy at JinAZ’s site.