By reputation, I'm an optimist. But I have to say, I'm very optimistic for Mauer in 2015.

I am not going to make excuses for a poor season. But there is a distinct difference between "excuses" and "reasons" for the happenings of things. Any or all of the following items could have lead to a poor season from Joe in 2014: an interrupted offseason program to get ready while still suffering/recovering from his concussion, STILL suffering from post-concussion syndrome the first half of the season (and from what we have seen and have been learning, this can't be discounted or tossed aside), the birth of Twins and first time fatherhood, the move from his primary life-long position to another, the pressure of trying to be and do too much for the team.

We may never know, but to me, I still believe it's the concussion and what it did not only to his offseason preparation, but he may have still had some lingering affects early on. Couple that with any and all of the other possibilities, I could see some added pressure involved as well. Regardless, while not the same old Joe, he did look and perform better the second half of the season.

I have not read or heard of anything that should slow Mauer down this offseason to get in his work in advance for next season. Further, while years of catching have probably robbed him a bit of speed and flexibility, he still posses a great deal of overall athletic talent, is not old by any means, and has different and nagging injuries in his career, and to our knowledge, doesn't suffer from anything chronic.

Even if, a big and unknown if, Mauer has indeed slowed enough to no longer be a .320-.330 hitter ever again, he can still be a valuable producer as a low .300 hitter with discipline and a high .300 OB%. I've never felt a move to 1B would suddenly turn Mauer in to a consistent power producer, despite less wear and tear on his body. To me, it's always been about just being healthy enough for 150 games and just produce at his normal per AB level. That in itself would provide quality hitting, quality OB, a lot of doubles, probably double digit HR's, and a lot of R and RBI opportunities if he had someone decent hitting in front of him.

I'm expecting a nice comeback and quality season for Mauer in 2015 playing a solid 1B, and hitting third for the Twins.

Given what Morneau experienced, you have to wonder if concussions have long lasting effects that the player is not even aware of.  Morneau struggled mightily for quite a while and then, magically, is back to one of the best hitters around.

My guess is that Joe bounces back next year to normal career type production.  I also believe that he will be one of the better defensive first baseball by this time next year - you could almost see the development over the course of the season.  I have given up hope, however, that the move to first base will limit his injuries.

We may never know, but to me, I still believe it's the concussion and what it did not only to his offseason preparation, but he may have still had some lingering affects early on. 

Aaron Gleeman posted something to this effect as well and added the following stat:

Joe Mauer hit .254 with a .332 on-base percentage in his first 64 games and hit .307 with a .400 on-base percentage in his last 56 games.

 

When I dug into that second half performance I found that he ended the year on not that great of note.  In his final 28 games of 2014 he has an .746 OPS, .075 ISO, and a 23.6% K%.  This makes me think that the concussion is not the whole answer and Joe may just be slowing down.