Ranking the 5 MVP Seasons From Minnesota Twins History

Great work brother. I think 1 and 2 could go either way. Carew hit. 400 until like August and Joe hit the 28 bombs with an insane slash line. Geez, Harmon could be #1 too.

Great work brother. I think 1 and 2 could go either way. Carew hit. 400 until like August and Joe hit the 28 bombs with an insane slash line. Geez, Harmon could be #1 too.

I think 4 and 5 could go either way too. It was an interesting topic. 

2006 was my favorite regular season of all time.   25-33 and 11.5 games back.   I remember Mike and Mike saying "stick a fork in the Twins.  They are done".   They went 71-33 the rest of the way in one of the most exciting finishes in baseball history and Morneau was the guy carrying them.   I know Mauer was great that year also as were a few other guys but my memory was that no one carried a team over a 100 games like Morneau did that year.    I put him at number one and am fine with the rest of the order from there.

Just to piggyback on something you already touched on, Mauer doing what he did in '09 as a catcher is really remarkable. There's an argument that's the greatest season any catcher has ever had. Johnny Bench and Mike Piazza are the two guys who immediately come to mind as the top challengers to for that honor.

Bench in '72 and Piazza in '97 definitely should be in the conversation, but Mauer in '09 was about as good as a catcher has ever been. Just an insanely great season.

If I was an opposing pitcher:

1. Killebrew 1969

2. Carew 1977

3. Morneau 2006

4. Mauer 2009

5. Versalles 1965

As an opposing pitcher the one batter I fear was Killebrew for well over a decade.

Carew hits a lot of singles and is a great hitter, but, he doesn't score as many runs in the 1970's with the number of times he gets on base so we can contain him except for 1977 when he put together a great season.

2006: Joe Mauer in his walk year hit a career high 28 Hrs and hit .365. I'm a pitcher I am more intimidated by seasons from Bench, Campanella, Piazza, Gary Carter as hitters. After the big contract, in the second year starts becoming a 60-70 run scoring and 55-65 RBI guy while moving to 1B.

2009: Morneau can drive in runs so top RBI guy. Too bad about concussions.

1965: Versalles Was 5th or 6th on team in OPS+. Made 39 errors at SS which won't get you playing time today. Oliva should have received award in a year they pick from a team going to WS he was hard to get out. Versalles has to rank among the worst MVPs of all-time. He led league in striking out as well in 1965.

2006 was my favorite regular season of all time.   25-33 and 11.5 games back.   I remember Mike and Mike saying "stick a fork in the Twins.  They are done".   They went 71-33 the rest of the way in one of the most exciting finishes in baseball history and Morneau was the guy carrying them.   I know Mauer was great that year also as were a few other guys but my memory was that no one carried a team over a 100 games like Morneau did that year.    I put him at number one and am fine with the rest of the order from there.

I am sorry, but getting swept by Oakland in the first round really kills it for me.  As great as that comeback was and as breath taking the stretch run was we did nothing with it in the end and I look back on 2006 as a damn shame.

I was OK with calling that a successful season at the time, but I can't look at it that way now.

Look at WAR and Carew blows them all away and even though we now question Versalles career year he the third best WAR season.  By WAR it is

• Carew
• Mauer
• Versalles
• Killebrew
• Morneau

I am sorry, but getting swept by Oakland in the first round really kills it for me.  As great as that comeback was and as breath taking the stretch run was we did nothing with it in the end and I look back on 2006 as a damn shame.

 

I was OK with calling that a successful season at the time, but I can't look at it that way now.

No problem.   I did say regular season and I have an easy time distinguishing.  You are more a destination guy and I am more a journey guy.    I enjoyed the ride in 2006 and thought it was a damn shame it had to end but as happy and excited as I was in 87 and 91 I could say the same thing for those years.   "Wait til next year" have always been bitter sweet words to me no matter how the current season ended.

If you want to cherry pick stats, how about waistlines? Killebrew tops them all. Or maybe height? Mauer gets my vote. Furthest distance from home? Carew wins that.

Mauer had the slight misfortune of having Buster Posey show up around that time, and put up a season about on a par with his (in a tougher home park to hit in) in 2012. Made it seem like, "meh, catchers be catchin'."
 

Molina peaked in 2012 too, had a similar season to Posey. (I'll admit, I've always wondered a little about Molina's big jump in offense from 2011-2013, but maybe he did just hit his peak from 28-30. As a catcher.)

It's always a little depressing to look back and recall that Mauer was having another monster season in 2013 before the concussion. He could have ended up with another 7 bWAR season, which would have put him in some pretty rarified air: very few catchers have hit that summit twice. (Bench x3, Fisk x2, Carter x3, Piazza x2) A lot of HoF catchers never cleared that height at all (no for Yogi, Rodriguez, Campy, Dickey, Hartnett...)

Probably the best catching season no one remembers is Gary Carter in 1982. Fisk got hurt in '79 and Carter took the title of "best catcher in baseball" and didn't give away the belt until '86 and you can make a pretty good argument the only player in all of baseball better than him was Robin Yount (who had an insane season for Harvey's Wallbangers).

If I was an opposing pitcher:
1. Killebrew 1969
2. Carew 1977
3. Morneau 2006
4. Mauer 2009
5. Versalles 1965

As an opposing pitcher the one batter I fear was Killebrew for well over a decade.

Carew hits a lot of singles and is a great hitter, but, he doesn't score as many runs in the 1970's with the number of times he gets on base so we can contain him except for 1977 when he put together a great season.


2006: Joe Mauer in his walk year hit a career high 28 Hrs and hit .365. I'm a pitcher I am more intimidated by seasons from Bench, Campanella, Piazza, Gary Carter as hitters. After the big contract, in the second year starts becoming a 60-70 run scoring and 55-65 RBI guy while moving to 1B.

2009: Morneau can drive in runs so top RBI guy. Too bad about concussions.

1965: Versalles Was 5th or 6th on team in OPS+. Made 39 errors at SS which won't get you playing time today. Oliva should have received award in a year they pick from a team going to WS he was hard to get out. Versalles has to rank among the worst MVPs of all-time. He led league in striking out as well in 1965.

Some rather bold statements in here, but I agree with them.  I totally agree with you on Zoilo.  THat was the year before I was born so I didn't see what happened, but looking at the numbers the whole thing seems odd.  As far as Mauer was concerned. I get what you are saying.  He really wasn't a game wrecker like Piazza was or a leader (important for a catcher) and power bat like Carter and Bench.  He played most of his career with a table setter's mindset.  Matty Alou hit over .330 in four consecutive seasons--from 1966 to 1969.  That is great, but give me what Harmon did those years over Matty Alou.

That said, Mauer in 2009 was unbelievable and I think Piazza, Bench and Carter had seasons that rival and perhaps surpass what Mauer did in 2009.  My trouble with Mauer is this...

A lot of people like to say he was "victimized" by Target Field but that doesn't hold up to the actual evidence.  When you watch the clip of all of his 2009 home runs (and watch it ALL) it is readily apparent that he hit at least a dozen home runs to center and right field and a good bunch of them went way over the wall.  In the entire rest of his career I do not know if he hit that many home runs to those parts of the field.  

Watch this here and tell me that Mauer didn't hit some monstrous shots to CF and RF.  I count about 12 absolute bombs to CF and RF with at least three upper deckers to right field.  Sure, he hit a lot of HRs too left that barely made it over the wall, but if you subtract ALL OF THOSE (which is ridiculous) he still has 12 or 13 home runs that were not hit to left field at all.  He hit a couple of deep deep bombs to center in NY, a couple in Texas and a couple in Anaheim.  He hit six or seven moonshots to right and CF in the Dome:

The truth about Joe's home run decline is that he decided to become a table setter.  He was all about slapping the ball to left and grinding out walks.  Given the money he was paid and what was expected when he signed that contract it is kind of weak, in my opinion.

I'll stick with Mauer #1.  To do what he did as a catcher is remarkable.

#2 on my list is Killebrew.  He did all that while playing OUT OF POSITION so the team could get Rich Reese's bat (and glove) in the lineup 49 HR's in the decade of the pitcher along with 140 RBI's is pretty darn impressive.

#3 Would be Carew.  Tremendous season.

#4 & #5 are also tough.  Morneau beat out a fellow SS in Jeter, so I'm kind of inclined to give the nod to Morneau (and I'm a child of the 60's and 70's so I've got nothing against Zoilo).  

1 - Harmon

2 - Rod

3 - Joe

4 - Justin

5 - Zoilo

I don’t think bwar does justice to Joe’s season. The physical and mental rigors of catching just doesn’t get reflected in any statistics. Not only was it a historically great season offensively, but he was partially responsible for understanding every hitters tendencies in the other dugout, and every pitchers repertoire in his. Catchers make situational calls, adjust the alignment of fielders. Oh, and they do it all while getting absolutely shredded physically (no other position compares even remotely, in terms of mental/physical stress - it’s the only position on the field that has to be 100% situationally engaged on every single pitch), which derailed what certainly would’ve been a 3,000+ hit and HOF career.

I’m sorry, but 40 HRs with awful defense isn’t even in the same universe as Mauer’s season. Carew’s is closer, but still a distant second. Mauer’s season is easily the most impressive in my book, and it should be undisputed.

It gets me thinking again - what could have been. The numbers Mauer could’ve put up offensively if he played first base his whole career are likely astronomical in terms of hits/average (especially before the shifting craze). Could he have had a .400 season? Not a crazy notion. He’d likely still be playing and working on hit 3,500+. By various accounts, he was injured constantly, he just never complained about it. He didn’t voluntarily recuse himself from the lineup like many would/do.

It’s insane to me how underrated Mauer was/is by the majority of Twins fans. First, I don’t think most truly understand the rigors of catching (I likely don’t either, but I caught through High School and College - incredibly demanding - try sprinting down to back up first on every ground ball in full gear when the heat index with humidity is over 100...after squatting for an hour....the dehydration alone is enough to break most). Second, I think many of these others (Killebrew, Carew, Olivia, etc) are so much more highly regarded because many fans today didn’t see them play everyday. They are only aware of the highlights....whereas we all saw Mauer’s lows first hand. If the FO would’ve actually made an attempt at going all in at any point from 2000-2010 and brought home a World Series (or even an AL pennant), people would feel differently, which is a shame.

I'm not going to make a choice it's like prime rib vs filet. Or Raquel Welch in her prime vs Farrah Fawcett in hers, (a little levity for us older dudes, lol)

Harmon's numbers for his season are just incredible! But what Mauer did, and being a catcher, just can't be undersold. If you twisted my arm I might cry out Mauer's name simply because he was a catcher and I have a soft spot for that position and all it entails both physically and mentally.

In my humble opinion, we have been spoiled as baseball fans for the number of catchers and SS that have come along the last 20yrs or so. Someone more steeped in baseball history might correct me, and I'd welcome that. I was a kid when Bench played, a teenager when Fisk was still playing. But when I think of Carter, Rodriguez, Posey, Mauer and a few others I am blown away by the number of HOF worthy catchers I've watched, not to mention the re-invention of the SS position.

This article does make me a little sad I have to admit. Not predicting future MVP season's or WS championships, but oh what might have been for both Mauer and Mourneau without those damned concussions.

One thing that hasn't been mentioned was that Mauer missed all of April injured. And then played pretty much every gome the rest of the year.

Thanks for this, Matthew.

Doc: Raquel hands down  ;>)

I concur.

Doctor, do you concur?

I concur.

Doctor, do you concur?

Wait...I can't have both???

It is widely stated here that Mauer's concussions ruined his career.  I don't dispute that on its face, however, that was not the case in 2011 (where he was greatly diminished).  The first known/documented concussion he had was in 2013.  Then in 2016 he stated that he continued to have symptoms for several years afterward.  If we are to take Joe at his word, that he felt post-concussion effects for that long....how is it nothing was noted by the medical staff?  With matters such as this isn't it incumbent upon the player to be forthright with the medical staff?  Why was he still catching?

The concussion issues are part of it, but Mauer did himself in as well--in my opinion.  He wasn't one to embrace strength and conditioning and he refused to change his approach.  He looked weak when he came in for the 2011 and I saw that right away.  Not sure what happened to him that winter between 2010-2011, but maybe the pressure of the contract and getting swept by the Yankees again rocked his world emotionally?  It sure felt like it to me..

For the sake of my own amusement I wanted to see what that bastion of journalistic integrity  , The New York Post, had on its web site on the day Morneau was announced as MVP. The large headline was "JETER LOSES MVP", with a large photo of him and a small photo of Morneau inserted on the side. This was funny and awful at the same time, though not surprising.

I won't go by WAR...because Killebrew is robbed blind by WAR's defensive component. And WAR's defensive components are flawed...significantly, IMO.

1.Killebrew (offensively, that 1969 season is way better than Carew and Mauer's year. Way superior. It just is.)

2/3. Carew (his 1977 was better than Mauer's 2009 offensively...especialy when you consider Carew played nearly 20 more games that Joe that year.)

3/2. Mauer (the only reason WAR puts Mauer's 2009 up/over Killebrew's 1969 and/or Carew's 1977 is because of the positions they played; Still, I'm ok with Mauer's 2009 being with or ahead of Carew's 1977 based on the 105 games Joe played catcher that year. But not Killebrew. Killebrew's season was just too much better offensively.)

4. Morneau (he deserved that MVP)

5. Versalles (he deserved that MVP)