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 Is this time right for Joe Mauer to return to the Minnesota Twins lineup? Mauer is set to make his return on Friday when the Twins host the Padres as the Twins are playing their best baseball of the season.
Since June, the Twins have won 11 of 14 games, outscoring their opponents 64-33, on their way to winning their fourth straight series, while batting .262—almost 20 points higher than their season average. Minnesota starters have gone 9-3 with three complete games and a 2.06 ERA in 96.1 innings since the beginning of June. The return of the three-time batting champion and league MVP could have a negative impact on the chemistry of the Twins. As Alexi Casilla, Ben Revere and Luke Hughes have picked up their games recently, how will Mauer's insertion into the lineup affect the production the Twins have produced? During Dan Barriero's Bumper-to-Bumper show on KFAN Wednesday afternoon, he played an interview of Twins radio analyst and former Twins outfielder Dan Gladden with the Score 670 in Chicago. Gladden's comments questioned Mauer's toughness and approach. Gladden pointed out the work ethics of Justin Morneau and Michael Cuddyer and pointed out that Mauer may not have been ready when he reported in spring training. When you're the highest paid player on the team, and the public recognizes you as the franchise player, some of that needs to carry over into the locker room and onto the field. In his career, Mauer has not demonstrated the type of leadership that past players like Kirby Puckett and Kent Hrbek demonstrated when they led the Twins to two World Series championships in 1987 and 1991. Since his second year in the majors he has averaged only 130 games per season—sitting out almost 30. When Puckett, an owner of a single batting title, reached the postseason his average did not plummet. A career .318 hitter, Puckett hit .309 in the playoffs and World Series. He rose to the occasion raising his slugging percentage in the postseason by 59 points. Compare this to Mauer, a three-time batting champion, whose average drops 40 points and his slugging percentage drops 28 points. With Mauer's return from his nine-week layoff, he needs to step up and prove he is ready to lead the Minnesota Twins—his activation off the 60-day DL displaced Brian Dinkelman from the Twins 40-man roster. Based on how the Twins have been handling their $23 million baby, it may be some time the end of next week when the Twins play in San Francisco and Milwaukee, when there will be no designated hitter, before we see Mauer catching in back-to-back games. Here's hoping that Mauer's return does not derail the Twins' winning ways.
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