It’s the $184 million question.
Well, for the Twins, it’s more like the $184 million gamble.
It is too early to panic in the Twin Cities, but it’s pretty close to that. With the Twins All-Star batting champ catcher Joe Mauer on the 15-day DL looking thin and not so MVP-ish, everyone in the state of Minnesota is starting to ask themselves the question only a brave few have raised before about their golden child: Should Joe Mauer stop catching?
When this question was raised after the St. Paul native inked his monster contract, the largest the Twins have ever handed out, those who raised it were crucified.
But the question is becoming more and more valid as the years pass. He’s just in the second year of a deal that will keep “Baby Jesus” in a Twins uniform until the 2018 season, but Twins fans are sobering up from the hangover of securing their hometown hero in Minnesota.
The blasphemous idea that Mauer switch positions is finally starting to seem rational to not only Twins fans, but those inside the organization.
After all, he is a $184 million investment and to have him get gassed on year three or four would be disastrous.
The reason for this is not only because the critics of the deal (of which there are plenty) would rub everyone’s face in it, but the Twins would be stuck in a massive finical hole.
The Twins have had problems keeping star players in Minnesota before and the contract they gave Mauer will definitely hinder their chances of retaining players under contract now.
Players like Michael Cuddyer, Jason Kubel and Jim Thome are free agents after this year and with the Twins needing to look ahead at resigning Justin Morneau after 2013 and dealing with Fransisco Liriano after this season, the roster may look drastically different next year.
This is the first trickle effect of the Mauer deal, but the second is a floodgate.
It’s no secret catchers decline fast in the majors and Mauer is starting to show he is no different. Many fans are naively assuming that Mauer has yet to hit his prime, but the fact of the matter is he may have done this in his batting championship season.
Mauer is in his seventh year as a catcher in the major leagues and he has recently been plagued by a string of injuries which have aged him as a catcher.
Just this offseason, he had arthroscopic knee surgery and his recent illness has caused his knees to become sore, hence his trip to the DL.
With seven years remaining on his deal and his knees beginning to go, the answer to all the questions may be to simply move Mauer from catcher to another position.
This can work for and against the Twins.
In the pros category, Minnesota can solve their finical problem if they switch Mauer. They already have Drew Butera, who albeit doesn’t posses Mauer’s defensive prowess but is a favorite among pitchers.
Last season, there was a string of games near the end of the year where pitchers such as Carl Pavano that actually requested Butera over Mauer.
Mauer could fill a hole his contract will create in the outfield or perhaps (and most likely) dig in at third base depending on how sold Minnesota is on Danny Valencia.
If all else fails, Mauer could fill the DH spot should they not be able to re-sign Kubel or if Thome decides to call it a career. This also may allow the Twins to keep Denard Span and possibly Delmon Young instead of trading one of them away this year.
But these same scenarios can hurt the Twins as much as it can help them. Worst case is the Twins keep Mauer at catcher and his knees deteriorate to the point where his hitting begins to suffer. This would spoil the entire point of the monster contract.
The Twins would then retool their outfield and start from stretch as they did when they got rid of Torii Hunter. Kubel, Thome and Cuddyer would then all leave via free agency and either Denard Span, Delmon Young or both are traded to free up money and fill in positional areas made vacant by all the moves.
By the time the prospects they receive or the players they call up are ready to be starring players, Mauer will be near the end of his contract and the pitching rotation will be in turmoil.
This is all, of course, worst case scenario, but it’s not an unreal possibility. It’s becoming more and more evident that Mauer needs to move and it’s one of many things the Twins will need to deal with in the next few years.
The counter to all the negative scenarios is Ivan Rodriguez has lasted over 20 years behind the plate and he hasn’t moved positions.
It’s not speculation anymore and Mauer needs to move—his knees are blatant evident of that. But if and when he does is an entirely different story.
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