Fort Myers, Fla. ? The Minnesota Twins were after a third baseman with proven power, and the offseason pursuit was sputtering along.

Then general manager Terry Ryan received a tip, and the search was redirected toward Japan. Tony Batista, a man on a mission of his own, was ready to return to the majors after his recent release.

So the Twins gave him a $1.25 million, one-year contract that becomes guaranteed when he makes the opening-day roster, confident his consistency at hitting homers and driving in runs will overshadow his typically high-strikeout total, low on-base percentage and declining range in the field.

Batista, who hit .263 with 27 homers and 90 RBIs for Fukuoka in the Japanese Pacific League after signing a $15 million, two-year contract with the club, was released after just one season because the team favored a native prospect at his position.

To Batista, it was all part of the plan. He said he believed he was there for more than just baseball.

“A lot of people I give the Bible, Japanese guys, and they read the Bible,” Batista said. “So I think God probably said, ‘You’re done over there.”‘

The 32-year-old Batista, who will wear No. 77, is a man with many quirks, a penchant for speaking in the third person and a reputation for generosity. He has been known to donate thousands of dollars to churches in cities he visits during road trips.

Minnesota twins third baseman Tony Batista fields a ball during spring training workouts. Batista, shown Saturday in Fort Myers, Fla., is giving the Twins another offensive weapon for 2006.

He sure didn’t waste time with an introduction, raising his arms in the clubhouse on his first day at camp and announcing, “I am Tony Batista, from the Dominican Republic.”

Batista uses a unique, unconventional stance, with his toes pointed at the mound and his bat sticking straight up in front of his body – before recoiling into a more familiar position as the pitcher winds up. He has an interesting routine in the field, too, following his team’s first pitch of the game. He slowly lifts his arms in a circular motion while turning his head toward the sky for a brief prayer.

“He’s a fun guy to have around the clubhouse,” said left fielder Shannon Stewart, who played with Batista for the Blue Jays. “He’s a very good guy.”

Though he never has played more than two full seasons at any stop (Oakland, Arizona, Toronto, Baltimore, Montreal), Batista has always sent the ball in the seats. In fact, his home run totals in six of the past seven years would have been tops in Minnesota.

He’s been an All-Star twice, in 2000 and 2002, and has season totals of at least 25 homers and 87 RBIs since 1999. That’s a welcome sight to manager Ron Gardenhire, who got only 13 home runs from his third basemen last year and started six different players at that position.

“You read those bubblegum cards, those numbers jump at you,” Gardenhire said. “He’s a veteran. Knows how to play.”

Preferring to play at 205 pounds, Batista acknowledged he was closer to 220 but insisted he needs the extra weight at the beginning of camp to make him work harder in preparation for the regular season.

Yes, he’s got a little bit of a gut, and his laid-back demeanor can look bad to some observers.

“No matter what a guy looks like … he can play,” Stewart said. “He’s going to be a good fit.”

Ryan received satisfactory reports on Batista.

“If people don’t fit in and they’re going to be a renegade and they’re going to be an individualist and they’re going to end up causing all kinds of worries,” Ryan said, “they don’t want them around anymore than the management does.”

Batista, for his part, is confident he won’t be a letdown.

“Same Tony Batista you see … play for eight years in the major leagues,” he said, “you’re going to see here.”