By: Mike
It’s winter here in the Midwest already. The leaves are all down, the trees are naked, and the Canadian airflow seems to have locked us in already. I am depressed less than two weeks after the World Series. But today I was thinking of someone who made me smile.
Joe Mauer was a really interesting, terrific player to me. And he belongs in the Hall of Fame.
Before you curse me and stop reading, or accuse me of having lost my mind, give me a chance to make my argument. And then you can curse me and attack me in the comments. Deal?
Mauer played all fifteen years of his career with one team, his hometown Minnesota Twins. A six-time All Star, Mauer also won five Silver Sluggers at the hardest position on the field, catcher. He also won three batting titles…while playing the hardest position on the field, catcher. Only catcher ever to win three batting titles. You could look it up!
He was the most valuable player in 2009, when hit .365. He also won three Gold Gloves, and would have won more if not for a guy named Ivan Rodriguez. His career WAR was 55.1. He was the first overall pick in the 2001 draft. I would like to remind you that he was a 6’5” catcher, large for the position, but athletic, fluid and dexterous in his movements. Career OBP .388. Six times, over .400 OBP.
The detractors will say that he was overpaid when he signed his big contract. That was an eight year, $184 million contract that Mauer signed before the injuries really took their toll on his abilities. In his career, Mauer made more than $200 million in salary. People like to cite this fact when they talk about what they feel Mauer “should” have been as a player. Instead, let’s focus on what he was.
Concussions ended his career behind the plate. As a first baseman, he did not display the power most fans and clubs associate with the position. Mauer’s game was never power. His game was contact, putting the ball in play. Strikeouts were fairly rare for him, only striking out more than 100 times in a season once in his career. He was adept at taking a walk. He was an excellent catcher, behind only Pudge Rodriguez and Yadier Molina as the finest defensive catchers of his generation, I would argue.
I ask you to remember how good Mauer was behind the plate. I would argue that Mauer was the best catcher in the American League before he was forced to change positions due to the concussion issues. Statistics show us that he was a superior pitch framer and threw out a high percentages of potential base stealers.
Too often the HOF debate centers on career numbers. Some guys put up numbers that no one can even question, video game numbers, and they go in immediately. Why not think of a player’s peak value as well as their career value? If at his peak, Mauer was the best catcher in the game for what I would argue was five years, in my mind, that is enough to warrant consideration. The guy was locked in as a .300 hitter every year, batting third, while catching. How many catchers can hit nowadays? How many hit third? How many hit over .300? His batting averages were .328, .365, .327 in the years he won the Gold Gloves. He had other years of .347, .319, .324.
And consider this, friends: in an era that was marked by scandal, what of Joe Mauer? Never even ejected from a game. No steroids that we ever heard of. No scandals. Played for one team his entire career. His hometown team. A family man. Approachable, honorable. Never left, although he could have at several points. Does that make him a Hall of Famer? No. But I point to it to show that the guy was a breath of fresh air. Despite his outstanding skills in baseball, there was a little bit of the Everyman in Joe Mauer, wasn’t there? I always pulled for him because of this perception. I could have been him…except for the fact that I have no skills.
And here’s my final argument. While many of us will argue about WAR, it’s a great stat in many ways. Mauer was 55.1 WAR, as I said earlier. WAR measures how much better a player is than an available replacement level player. Where does that rank him all-time among catchers? Seventh.
In order of WAR: Johnny Bench (75.9), Gary Carter (70.1), Ivan Rodriguez (68.7), Carlton Fisk (68.5), Mike Piazza (59.6), Yogi Berra (59.4). Know what they have in common? All have plaques in the Hall of Fame.
Mauer should get one, too. He may not be a first ballot guy in voters’, or your, mind. And that’s fine. But there is huge value to this career, and I encourage fans to take a deeper dive into the statistics. We cannot simply look at home runs and RBI to tell the tale of a hitter anymore. Looking further into it, you will see that he should merit strong consideration for the Hall of Fame. He would be on my ballot if I had one. Now Chase Utley…that’s a blog for another day…or Larry Walker…hm.
Have a great Thanksgiving with family and friends next week!