Soul Patrol (baseball)
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The Soul Patrol was a name given to the Minnesota Twins' outfield in the early part of the 2000 decade. Following the departure of left fielder Chad Allen after the 1999 season, the 2000 team had an outfield consisting of Jacque Jones in left, Torii Hunter in center, and Matt Lawton in right. This trio was dubbed the "Soul Patrol" by a local sportswriter, because each player was sufficiently soulful to warrant the collective moniker. Further, all were capable players, with respective batting averages of .285, .280, and .305 in 2000. After years of subpar teams, this outfield of promising young players led Twins fans to an unfamiliar sense of optimism throughout the 2000 and 2001 season. This optimism was proven to be well-founded when the team went on to win the American League Central Division in 2002.
On July 30, 2001, the Soul Patrol ended abruptly when the Twins traded Lawton to the New York Mets for pitcher Rick Reed. Right field would subsequently be manned by the platoon of Dustan Mohr and Bobby Kielty, known by fans collectively as "Dusty Kielmohr." While both were similarly encouraging players, neither possessed a sufficient amount of soul for the term "Soul Patrol" to endure.
However, midway through the 2003 season, the Twins acquired left fielder Shannon Stewart from the Toronto Blue Jays in exchange for Kielty. This trade vastly favored the Twins, as Stewart was a proven player and leadoff hitter while Kielty left the Blue Jays within a year. Further, Stewart possessed an amount of soul that was sufficient for some fans to say the "Soul Patrol" had been recreated.
The outfield of Stewart, Hunter, and Jones would endure until the end of the 2005 season, when Jones left for the Chicago Cubs. However, Stewart would sustain several injuries over these years. These injuries frequently limited him to designated hitter duties and landed him on the disabled list a couple times. Stewart's absence from the outfield allowed players such as Lew Ford to see substantial playing time. Although Ford is an interesting player, his amount of soul is suspect. Consequently, the existence of the "Soul Patrol" during the 2004 and 2005 seasons is open to debate.
