With quick feet and quick mind, Revere makes a lasting impression

The eavesdropper leaned in to hear what Twins' Denard Span had to say about the man who's replacing him in center field, rookie Ben Revere.

Span knows he has a stronger arm that Revere, whose throwing might be his weakest trait. As for speed ...

"He's quicker than I am,'' Span said. "His first step, he gets to full speed. As for me, the third or fourth step is when I get going. I think that's the biggest difference between the two of us.''

Span surveyed the group of questioners and discovered Revere's smiling face among them.

"Hey!'' Span yelled. "Get out of here!''

Revere retreated to his clubhouse stall, but the smile never left his face. It rarely has during a late-season stint last year and two call-ups this year.

But it's the Twins who are upbeat about the way Revere covers ground in the outfield, doesn't strike out a lot and puts pressure on defenses with his blazing speed.

Revere has been steady while
replacing injured teammates, batting .272 in 26 games. Since Span went down because of a concussion just more than a week ago, Revere is batting .259 but has scored five runs in six games and has patrolled center field with aplomb.

He made two excellent catches on Saturday during a victory over Texas, including a highlight-reel grab of David Murphy's drive on which he launched himself after the ball to make the catch.

Good or bad, Revere keeps smiling and is one of several players stepping up to help the Twins win while injured starters recuperate. He'll get his first taste of the rivalry against the White Sox on Tuesday night when he's expected to be in the starting lineup for the opener of a three-game series. Revere was called up May while the Twins were in Chicago but didn't play in the series.

"He carries himself really well,'' Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "It looks like he's really enjoying playing the game of baseball, and that's what you hope you get out of everybody is that enjoyment, not only making good plays.

"Even when he makes a funny play, he'll have a smile on his face. And not because he's joking he screwed up, he knows, kind of thinks it through and tries to get better. Those guys have that charisma about him.

"By no means am I comparing him to Kirby Puckett as a player yet, but that smile ... He comes in and he's got that smile on his face. He's happy to be here and that shows everywhere he goes.''

Revere hasn't been perfect. He was fined by the team for missing a sign during the series in Cleveland last week. On Thursday, he air-mailed a throw over the cutoff man against the Rangers. He has been working on his swing to get the bat head out quicker and make better contact (only one of his 22 hits are for extra bases).

He's trying to address those issues, but his confidence hasn't wavered. Gardenhire said Revere takes criticism well, says "yes, sir,'' and then tries to improve.

"It's gotten a lot better,'' Revere said of his confidence, "especially from last year, experiencing it for the first time, now I got all the nerves out. Now I go in there and play my game like I've always been playing, like I've been playing, having fun like I did back in summer ball, high school.''

Revere, 23, was drafted 28th overall in 2007 and has a career .326 average in the minors. He might be the fastest player in the organization, as evidenced by his 44 stolen bases in 2008 with Class A Beloit (when he batted .379) and his 45 steals for Class A Fort Myers in 2009.

In 380 minor-league games — 1,654 plate appearances — Revere has grounded into a double play only 14 times.

But Revere's arm? Think Shannon Stewart. But Revere tries to make up for it by getting to balls and getting throws off quickly.

Revere has played well enough that Gardenhire would like to keep him with the team when everyone is healthy. Gardenhire has used Revere and other younger and faster callups from Class AAA Rochester to steal bases and employ the hit and run.

Gardenhire wants to keep using that speed game even when — if — his team gets fully healthy.

The Twins will have a difficult decision on how to keep Revere on the roster. With a four-man bench — and presuming that designated hitter Jim Thome will be activated from disabled list in the next week or so — there might not be room for Revere and Jason Repko as reserve outfielders.

With Revere making an impact, that's a good problem to have.

"He deserves to be here,'' Span said. "He's a game-changer. He's a threat every time he goes up to the plate. He plays good defense. What else can you ask from him?''