Goessling: Joe Mauer says he has a lot to prove

[Parker Hageman]

The St Paul Pioneer Press's Ben Goessling visited with Joe Mauer recently about the dreadful 2011 season. The piece is worth reading beginning to end but here's some of the key quotes out of the article:

 

Mauer on the '11 clubhouse vibe:

 

"It's a better vibe around here," Mauer said as he relaxed on a bench outside the Twins' clubhouse last month. "But things that have made us successful in the past - you talk about team camaraderie, guys having each other's backs - that wasn't really the case last year."

 

On why the communication problem regarding his injuries:

 

"A lot of times, you had a microphone in front of your face, and you didn't really know (how to explain it)," he said. "The unknown was the reason why it was frustrating for everybody....But looking back, there's things that I wish were communicated and done a little differently."

 

The article goes on to say that the Twins encourage Mauer to workout more in the offseason as he is now approaching his age-30 season and he spent time with Tom Kelly honing his craft at first base. The biggest takeaway though is that he sound healthy and happy.

[clem18532]

For the Twins to have a prayer at the 5th wildcard spot, they are going to need Mauer and Morneau to play 130 games, Liriano and Baker to start 25 games, and rely on someone besides Perkins in the Bullpen to be a stop gap. I'd say thats pretty unlikely and we're probably headed for 70-75 wins this year. You have the Yankees, Tigers, Rangers, Red Sox, and Angels *(edit) and Rays* - Where do the Twins fit into that mix?? They don't.

[StormJH1]

I'm giving Mauer every chance to redeem himself this year, and that guy is a special player when he has it together. But let's just call BS on that second quote above about his "communication problems". How many times did Mauer ACTUALLY allow a microphone to go in front of his face during the long stretches of 2011? For him to say that he didn't articulate his problems well enough or could have explained them better at the time....has he explained them NOW?

 

I think the backlash that a lot of Phillies fans are directing at Chase Utley right now is similar to what this fanbase has had with Mauer for years. We understand that baseball is a very physically demanding sport that stresses the body over 162 games, and that many players (due to luck or their own "constitution") are going to have to miss time. Mauer didn't choose to get sick or hurt last year, but he did CHOOSE to make himself as invisible as possible. He does make make the CHOICE to accept a $184 million contract, spend his winters living in Florida, and then avoid as much contact with the media and public as possible from April to September. He's a private guy and a shy guy, and yes, if he were hitting .300 with 25 HR's and rarely missed time, we probably wouldn't care. When he's NOT doing that, people do care, and hopefully that quote was part of a realization that he needs to change, both on and off the field.

[ScrapTheNickname]

For the Twins to have a prayer at the 5th wildcard spot, they are going to need Mauer and Morneau to play 130 games, Liriano and Baker to start 25 games, and rely on someone besides Perkins in the Bullpen to be a stop gap. I'd say thats pretty unlikely and we're probably headed for 70-75 wins this year. You have the Yankees, Tigers, Rangers, Red Sox, and Angels *(edit) and Rays* - Where do the Twins fit into that mix?? They don't.

130 games is far too few. That would mean they play in only 80% of the games. Mauer and Morneau need to each play in 150+ games for The Twins to have a chance. Will that happen? How the hell should I know.

[Harrison Greeley III]

All he really needed to do was admit that he came back from his knee surgery way too soon. He wasn't healed yet, he had no power coming from his lower body in his swing and the bad communication made him seem like a softy in a big hockey market. He really did need to get out in front of it himself, and he didn't. The talk radio evaluation of his toughness is incorrect, but his inability to get out in front of the message fell on his shoulders.