FORT MYERS, Fla. — Finally, a Jeter that Boston can love.

Jeter Downs got his name from Derek Jeter but he’s one of the newest Red Sox after coming over from the Dodgers in Monday’s blockbuster trade for Mookie Betts. The 21-year-old middle infielder received a big-league invite to spring training, and while he isn’t expected to figure into the Red Sox’s plans this season, it may not be long before his job is to beat his namesake’s old team.

“[My mom] just loved Jeter and how he was and the way he played the game, so she gave me the name,” Downs said Wednesday morning at Fenway South. “I idolized him, just the way he played, the way he went about the game and the things he did, how he was respected by every single team. It was pretty cool, as a kid — I don’t care what team you [root for], it was just cool to watch a guy like that play the game.”

Downs had never met Jeter until this past week, only days before he was traded to the Red Sox. He and his brother Jerry — a first baseman in the Red Sox organization — were on the way to train with former Yankee Raul Ibanez.

“We’re in traffic and my brother sees this Range Rover pulling up,” Downs said. “He’s like, ‘Oh my God, is that Jeter?’ [Jerry] honks and I wave at him. So I was going to train with Raul Ibanez, so then I called Raul and I was like, ‘Yo, tell Jeter the kid that was waving at him was Jeter.’ So then he told him that and it was pretty cool that I met him, and now look.”

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A few days later, the Marlins hosted an event at Topgolf and one of Downs’ friends got to Jeter for a few minutes.

“He FaceTimed me with Jeter on the phone,” Downs said. “[Jeter said] just that he’s been watching and stuff like that. Little nuances of baseball. … I idolized him my whole life so then finally to get to meet him and talk to him a little bit, it was definitely special.”

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