Reversing Thoughts on Revere

On Day 1 of the 2007 MLB Amateur Draft, people (myself included) kept harping on the Minnesota Twins’ overdraft of a Kentucky high school by the name of Ben Revere. Well, the diminutive outfielder (5-9, 165) is obviously out to make a lot of people look silly.

His onslaught began in his pro debut when he hit .325/.388/.461 in 191 Rookie Ball at-bats. Revere slugged 10 triples and kept his strikeout rate down at a respectable 10.5 percent, while walking 6.4 percent. He also stole 21 of 30 bases.

Revere had a late start to 2008, but he has been on fire since joining Beloit at the end of April. He is currently hitting .403/.457/.548 with 13 doubles and eight triples in 221 at-bats. Revere has walked just 18 times (less than eight percent), but he has kept his strikeouts down to about 10 percent. He has stolen 26 bases in 37 attempts.

Here is the bad news. Revere is probably not going to keep channeling Kirby Puckett and the slugging percentage is going to take a hit as he moves up the ladder – power is just not his game. He is also not going to hit .400 this season. His BABIP is currently astronomical at .440 and he has a line drive rate of 16 percent.

Regardless, Revere is gaining well-deserved attention and could be in Minnesota quicker than anyone projected – perhaps as soon as late 2010 – if his lack of patience does not hurt him at Double-A and above.