Is Joe Mauer Baseball's Best Catcher? Best Ever?

Minnesota Twin All-Star Is Off to Fast Start With New-Found Power

Jun 16, 2009

It might not have been apparent at the time, but Minnesota's Joe Mauer set the tone for his 2009 season when he smacked a home run in his first at bat of the season.

Mauer has been known for his ability to hit for average, play defense and handle pitchers since he was first penciled into the Twins lineup in 2004. The only rub against the Twin Cities native? A lack of power.

In just 42 games since returning from the disabled list, Mauer has crushed 13 homers (he had just 44 total before this season) and produced a slugging percentage of ,756, well ahead of his career slugging average of .477.

And Mauer is posting impressive stats (through Tuesday night's inter-league game against the Pittsburgh Pirates) in other areas as well:

"He's pretty quick," Gardner said of the 6-foot-5-inch, 225-pound Mauer. "It really wasn't that close. He beat me there by probably a full step. He got back to the plate a lot quicker than I thought he would."

Even Elton John is a Fan

Gardner is not the only convert to Mauer's growing fan base. The world famous and the anonymous are taking note of the 26-year-old's abilities.

Rock superstar Elton John - a baseball nut - recently requested an autographed photo of Mauer (and his slugging teammate Justin Morneau) and declared Mauer the best catcher in baseball, the Pioneer Press in St. Paul reported.

"He's a baseball fan," Mauer told reporters. "I had to sign 'Sir Elton.' I've never done that before."

Meanwhile, writing at fantasypros911.com, blogger "Sooze" marveled in her "Women's Lip" blog, "It's safe to say that Mauer is pretty much blowing everyone's mind right now, but I'm still trying to wrap mine around his recent [bizarro] baseball-crushing ways."

Mauer Getting Lots of Good Coverage

And ESPN.com baseball writer Buster Olney summed up the totality of Mauer's game by describing his defensive qualities: "When he's behind the plate, he steers a pitching staff that, for better or worse, must determine the fate of this small-market franchise,"

Olney wrote in his blog. "He calls for fastballs or breaking balls or changeups and the pitchers mostly nod at his directions. He has the ability to coax a struggling youngster through a tough inning, and to expertly frame a pitch that can alter the count dramatically."

The wonks at baseballprospectus.com declared Mauer the best catcher in baseball before the season started, when he was on the disabled list and his power surge had yet to emerge. "Mauer is the best position player on the Twins, and one of the best in all of baseball. The scary thing is that he`s probably only going to get better from here."

Hall of Fame Credentials in the Making?

In fact, comparisons to other catchers currently in the majors, including the likes of Atlanta's Brian McCann and the Dodgers' Russell Martin have cooled in favor of discussions about how Mauer stacks up against the likes Hall of Famers.

Duane Winn, blogging for bleacherreport.com believes Mauer might be one of, if not, history's best.

"Mauer's impeccable credentials are a matter of history,'" Winn wrote. "Mauer . . . is a two-time American League batting king with a lifetime .316 batting average. His career .399 on-base percentage is phenomenal, far outdistancing the marks amassed by such Hall of Fame catchers as Yogi Berra (.348), Johnny Bench (.342), and Carlton Fisk (.341). "

Writer Pat Borzi's recent story for MinnPost.com about Mauer's seeming ascendency to the top of the catcher's ranks included praise from a not-so-shabby practitioner using the so-called tools-of-ignorance behind the plate.

"That was an impressive play," said the Boston Red Sox's Jason Varitek, himself a three-time All-Star catcher. Varitek called Mauer "probably the best at our position in the game right now."

Mauer a Tough Interview to Make Exciting

As for the usually modest Mauer, he's just that amid all the adulation. To what does he attribute his upturn on an already stellar reputation?

"I don't know. I'm just seeing the ball well," Mauer told Fox Sports North after a recent 4 for 4 night at the plate against Cleveland. ""I'm not treally trying to hit home runs or anything like that, just putting a good swing on the ball and hit the ball somewhere."

With that boilerplate Mauerism, FSN's Robby Incmikoski tried to prod Mauer into saying something even relatively provocative: "Joe, you're a hard guy to get a big quote from, man, I swear."

The copyright of the article Is Joe Mauer Baseball's Best Catcher? Best Ever? in Major League Baseball is owned by Keith Moyer. Permission to republish Is Joe Mauer Baseball's Best Catcher? Best Ever? in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.