Lew Ford played five seasons with the Minnesota Twins, and the 1994 Port Neches-Groves High School graduate made enough of an impact to receive a high honor from a team fanpage.

Ford was named to TwinsDaily.com’s Twins All-Decade Team of the 2000s as a hitter. The website has released two lists — hitters and pitchers — for each decade the Twins have played in Minnesota (the original Washington Senators moved to Minnesota in 1961).

Ford was elected as a designated hitter. In 494 games from 2003-07, Ford batted .272 with a .349 on-base percentage and .402 slugging clip. He doubled 80 times and homered 32 times while driving in 172 runs.

“This may be a controversial choice, but Ford did play some DH throughout his time with the Twins,” TwinsDaily.com wrote, adding Denard Span and A.J. Pierzynski could have earned the honor.

The website noted Ford hit .329 in 35 games during his debut season and made the playoff roster. The next year, he was a finalist for the American League’s final vote and finished with a .299 average, 31 doubles, 15 home runs and 72 RBI.

Ford’s only other major-league stint came with the Baltimore Orioles for 25 games in 2012. Since, he’s played in the minor leagues, spending the last seven years as a player-coach.

About I.C. Murrell

I.C. Murrell was promoted to editor of The News, effective Oct. 14, 2019. He previously served as sports editor since August 2015 and has won or shared eight first-place awards from state newspaper associations and corporations. He was born in Memphis, Tennessee, grew up mostly in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and graduated from the University of Arkansas at Monticello.

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