'05 Legends Pence, Zobrist face off in NLDS
Last season, Ben Zobrist helped the Kansas City Royals win their first World Series championship in 30 years. This year, he's trying to end a drought for a fan base that's waited much longer than that.
Meanwhile, Hunter Pence is going for a third World Series championship ring in the last five years with the San Francisco Giants. The two will be on opposing sides when the Chicago Cubs and the Giants start their National League Division Series Friday night at Wrigley Field.
Eleven years ago, Pence and Zobrist were teammates with the Lexington Legends.
Zobrist, who signed with the Cubs during the off-season, is back in post-season play with a team that won 103 games during the regular season and finished 17 ½ games ahead of second-place St. Louis. If the Cubs go all the way, it will be their first World Series title since 1908.
Dependable as always, Zobrist played in 147 games this season and batted .272 with 18 home runs and 76 runs batted in. He played in 119 games at second base, one at first base, one at shortstop and the remainder in the outfield. He committed only seven errors all season.
Pence is in his 10th big league season, and he's back in post-season play for the fourth time. He's been on World Series championship teams with San Francisco in 2012 and 2014.
Pence has been the subject of good-natured heckling with "Hunter Pence signs" held up by fans of opposing teams (examples: "Hunter Pence eats pizza with a fork," "Hunter Pence hates bacon," and "Hunter Pence reads the iTunes terms and conditions for fun.")
But Pence has been a productive and well-respected player. He's a three-time National League All-Star who carries a .284 lifetime batting average and 207 major league home runs into the 2016 postseason. He's also a four-time winner of the Major League Baseball Players' Alumni Association Heart and Hustle Award, twice with the Houston Astros and twice with the Giants.
In 80 games with the Legends in 2005, he batted .338 with 25 homers and 60 runs batted in. He still holds the Legends record for slugging percentage at .652.
A shortstop with the Legends, Zobrist has played every position except pitcher and catcher during his major league career. He played in 68 games for Lexington in 2005, when the Legends were affiliated with the Astros. He batted .304 with two home runs and 32 runs batted in for the Legends. Traded to Tampa Bay in July of 2006, he made his major league debut August 1. Like Pence, Zobrist is a three-time major league All-Star. He was named twice while with Tampa Bay in the American League, and was a National League All-Star with the Cubs this season.
Zobrist and Pence were both inducted into the Legends Hall of Fame August 15, 2009, and recorded statements of acceptance which were played for the fans in Lexington that night.