Andrea's Ben Grieve Page

I have been a fan of Ben Grieve since the first game he played with the Huntsville Stars, our local team and the Oakland Athletics' AA team through the 1998 baseball season. (The Stars are now affiliated with the Milwaukee Brewers.) He's so talented that he didn't remain here in Huntsville for long, though.

I was lucky enough to meet Ben last year when Oakland was in town for an exhibition game with the Huntsville Stars. I got to talk with him for a few minutes, and he seems to be a very nice person, in addition to being a great ballplayer. I scanned the baseball card he autographed for me so you all can look at it and be insanely jealous of me :-)

What can I say about Ben that hasn't already been said? He's a wonderful baseball player; he's got it all--he's a great hitter, smart baserunner, talented outfielder, I could go on and on. His talent was recently recognized when he won the 1998 AL Rookie of the Year award.
I think his page in the 1998 Huntsville Stars program sums his talent up pretty well:

"The A's have waited patiently as Grieve worked his way through the farm system. The big lefthanded hitter had his share of successes and struggles through his first three seasons, then energed last year as everything the organization had hoped. He started the season in Double-A Huntsville, made a stop at Triple-A Edmonton and finished in Oakland, where he made quite an impression by hitting .312 in 24 games. At three levels, he combined for .344-34-160 numbers with 106 walks. The A's eventually expect him to become a three-hole hitter who combines power, average, and on-base percentage. He has always seemed unruffled by pressure, and that held true after his promotion to the majors. Grieve has been given the right field job, and the A's expect him to emerge as an all-star before very long."

Since this page is just now being built, about all that's going to be here at first is a couple of pictures, his bio, and some links to some of my favorite Ben pages. Check back soon, though, because this page will be updated often. In addition, I have some great pictures from the final Oakland/Huntsville exhibition game. I've been busy with school and life in general, but I'll get some of the Ben pics scanned and up here as soon as I can.

Obtained: Oakland's first round pick (second pick overall) in the 1994 free agent draft

Here is Ben's pic from 1997 when he was playing for the Huntsville Stars:

Some of my favorite Ben Grieve links:

The Ben Grieve Discussion List: A discussion list dedicated to Ben that I created at ONEList
The Ben Grieve Online Fan Club: A fan club that I created for Ben in conjunction with the discussion list
Darron's Ben Grieve Page: A fan page dedicated to Ben
ESPN Sportszone-Ben Grieve: Ben's profile and scouting report at ESPN
CBS Sportsline: Ben's stats page at CBS Sportsline