I Meet Ben Revere of the Minnesota Twins

I got to meet Ben Revere at an autograph signing held at AME Sports in Roseville, MN. Ben signed a banner (which you can see in the above picture) given to me as a Christmas gift a couple of years ago by my sister-in-law.

Ben seems like a really nice guy who is just happy to be able to live the life he is living. Twins fans love Ben because of his speed on the bases and in the outfield, and because he does seem to so warm and upbeat. Long term though I fear Ben won’t be a star. That is not to say he won’t be a solid player, but his lack of power and inability to walks limits his upside.

Ben wears the #11 which was last worn prominently by Jacque Jones. Jacque was a member of the 2002, 2003 & 2004 division champion teams and he hit 132 home runs in his 7 years with the Twins. Jacque also struck out over 700 times and posted an OPS + of only 100.

Like Ben, Jacque did some things well, and some things not so well which kept him from being a star. However, Jacque is still well thought of by Twins fans who remember his time here. Ben Revere time here could be viewed in roughly the same way – not a star, but as a contributor who helped the Twins to success.

Jacque Jones

Jacque Jones was my favorite Minnesota Twin from 2000-20005. I felt that as Jacque Jones went, so went the Minnesota Twins. It seemed to me that when Jacque hit well the Twins won. When Jacque did not hit well the Twins lost.

I have no proof this was actually the case. Sabermertics people (people who study baseball stats) could probably produce numerous stats proving that say, for example, Torii Hunter was more important to the Twins success during those years. And while I love examining baseball stats and using them to prove a baseball player importance or unimportance, I sometimes just like going with a feeling that I get that a certain player is the key to a team.

Jacque, like Gary Gaetti before him, is one of those players whose value went beyond stats. Jacque willingly batted leadoff, even if he was not a typical leadoff hitter. Jacque, a left fielder, willingly moved to right field when Shannon Stewart joined the Twins and expressed a comfort level playing left field over right field. This made Stewart more productive and the Twins a better team.

Jacque was a team leader and teammate by example not words. I felt a need to write about Jacque, because I just received autographed baseball card back from him. Baseball cards stir up memories in me, and my memories of Jacque and his play for the Twins came back to me upon looking at this card. I could not help but think how great Jacque would look in left field for today’s Twins. Not to mention hitting leadoff.