TORONTO – Edouard Julien didn’t start for the Twins on Friday, but that’s because the Blue Jays started lefthander Yusei Kikuchi, not because of Julien’s two-week slump.

In fact, Rocco Baldelli said, he remains confident that the second-year second baseman eventually will produce at the level he did as a rookie.

“He’s battled himself a little bit this year. In my opinion, he’s fine. He’s doing his job,” the Twins manager said of Julien, who was 3-for-31 with 17 strikeouts in his previous 11 games. “It hasn’t come as easy for him, but that’s normal ups and downs. Especially as a guy in his second time through the league, that’s a fairly normal thing to be dealing with.”

Julien’s seven home runs in April, after hitting 16 last year, are especially impressive, given his size, Baldelli said.

“Combining his on-base abilities and the strength that he has in that frame, which is not a big frame” makes him especially difficult to pitch to, Baldelli said. “The way he impacts a baseball is impressive. He’s a very talented offensive player and a guy we have a tremendous amount of belief in.”

So do a number of Canadian fans: Julien spent several minutes before batting practice signing autographs for a large number of fans who had gathered near the Twins’ dugout, several of them wearing jerseys with his name on them.

“It’s nice. I’m glad they came out,” said Julien, who grew up in Quebec. “It makes me feel at home.”