The Twins 5 Best Seasons from Catchers Since Joe Mauer

[Ted Schwerzler]

The Minnesota Twins made Joe Mauer the first overall pick during the 2001 Major League Baseball draft. He went on to have a Hall of Fame career in Minnesota, and retired after the 2018 season. He stepped out from behind the plate in 2014, and the organization has been looking for answers since. Ryan Jeffers has provided one in 2023, but who else has carried the load?

 

Image courtesy of Jordan Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

With Joe Mauer’s number “7” having been immediately retired following his playing days, it was only right that he would eventually be inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame. He is on the ballot for Cooperstown this cycle, and will eventually be enshrined in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. Replicating that standard probably doesn’t need to be the goal, but finding a viable catching option has been a pursuit since he was forced from behind the dish.

Brain injuries took a toll on Mauer and forced him to first base for the 2014 season. Ron Gardenhire, Paul Molitor, and Rocco Baldelli have employed plenty of catchers since, but which seasons stand out as the best since Mauer put away the shin guards?

5. Kurt Suzuki - 2014
The first man to take the plate in the post-Mauer era, Suzuki earned his first all-star appearance in 2014. Playing in 131 games, his 105 OPS+ was a career high at the time, and he wound up catching the final out from teammate Glen Perkins at Target Field in what was Derek Jeter’s last All-Star Game. Suzuki was a quality veteran who did everything decently well. It was a solid transition for the position and provided some veteran stability to an otherwise poor Twins team. Replacing Mauer’s production at catcher was never going to happen, but getting average across the board was worth circling at an otherwise difficult spot.

4. Jason Castro - 2017
Following the Suzuki tenure, Castro came over as a former all-star for the Houston Astros. He flashed some offensive prowess during the 2013 season, and the hope was that he could replicate that success with the Twins. Castro was a solid defender, and his 93 OPS+ was decent for the role he was playing. Castro helped to bring that Twins team back to the postseason, and it was a good first showing for the time he spent in Minnesota.

3. Mitch Garver - 2021
The only player to make this list twice, Garver rebounded in a big way after an awful Covid season. Playing in just 23 of the 60 games during a shortened 2020, the former Twins prospect showed he still had what once made him a Silver Slugger. Garver played in only 68 games during 2021 as he dealt with injury again, but his .875 OPS and 139 OPS+ from the catcher position were as impressive as anything Twins fans had seen since Mauer. Despite the shortened exposure, he still blasted 13 homers and showed plenty of value.

2. Ryan Jeffers - 2023
What Jeffers is doing this season is unlike anything we have seen for the Twins since Garver went on his 2019 run. Christian Vazquez was signed in the offseason to be a stabilizing veteran presence that would at least warrant a 60/40 split behind the dish. Jeffers has pushed that to 50/50 at best, and should be on the 60/40 side sooner rather than later. Across 71 games he owns a career-best .862 OPS and 136 OPS+. Minnesota was chided for taking him in the second round of the 2018 draft as Jeffers was seen as a potential designated hitter. Instead, the Twins coached up his catching skills and made him a great receiver with adequate blocking skills. The bat has continued to play, and he looks the part of a regular for years to come.

1. Mitch Garver - 2019
A decade after Mauer won an MVP while posting a 1.031 OPS and 171 OPS+, Garver did his best impression. A key part of the Bomba Squad, the New Mexico-native slashed .273/.365/.630 (.995) with 31 big flies. Garver played in just 93 games that season, and was launching baseballs out of ballparks at an alarming rate. He adopted new catching techniques with Tanner Swanson helping to provide insight, and Garver positioned himself as among the best backstops in the game at that point. Injuries are really the only thing that have held him back since, and while we won’t likely see the juiced ball production again, it was the 2019 season that put a ninth-round pick from 2013 on the map.

Minnesota has the good fortune of having Jeffers under team control through the 2026 season. Vazquez becomes a free agent the year prior. Maybe it’s Alex Isola, Jair Camargo, Chris Williams, Ricardo Olivar, Carlos Silva, or some other prospect that makes the next impact. No matter what, Minnesota will continue looking for Mauer-like production at catcher for years to come. They likely will never find that sort of player again, but good impressions are noteworthy along the way.

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[Blyleven2011]

Garver had a tremendous  2019 , as  a lot of players had career years , it was an exciting year of Twins baseball  and we finally beat the Yankees at something that year ,  we out homered the Yankees by 1 homerun , won over a hundred games and Mauer  just retired after 2018 ...

Mauer will eventually get in to the Cooperstown hall of fame   , he was a very good hitting catcher ....

[mikelink45]

For Cooperstown Mauer needs to be seen as a catcher and not his post-concussion play.  Mauer was our best catcher.  To find others we need to go to Brian Harper, Earl Battey, A J and Butch Wynegar. 

Brian Harper 

1988	28	MIN	AL	60	182	166	15	49	11	1	3	20	0	3	10	12	.295	.344	.428	.772	114	71	12	3	2	1	1	2H/D5
1989	29	MIN	AL	126	412	385	43	125	24	0	8	57	2	4	13	16	.325	.353	.449	.802	119	173	11	6	4	4	3	2D/H935
1990	30	MIN	AL	134	509	479	61	141	42	3	6	54	3	2	19	27	.294	.328	.432	.760	107	207	20	7	0	4	2	*2D/5H3
1991	31	MIN	AL	123	469	441	54	137	28	1	10	69	1	2	14	22	.311	.336	.447	.783	111	197	14	6	2	6	3	*2/HD37
1992	32	MIN	AL	140	546	502	58	154	25	0	9	73	0	1	26	22	.307	.343	.410	.753	109	206	15	7	1	10	7	*2/HD
1993	33	MIN	AL	147	573	530	52	161	26	1	12	73	1	3	29	29	.304	.347	.425	.772	107	225	15	9	0	5	9	*2H/D
1994	34	MIL	AL	64	267	251	23	73	15	0	4	32	0	2	9	18	.291	.318	.398	.717	81	100	8	3	0	4	1	D2/97H

Earl Battey

1961	26	MIN	AL	133	522	460	70	139	24	1	17	55	3	3	53	66	.302	.377	.470	.847	121	216	18	3	5	1	3	*2/H	GG
1962	27	MIN	AL	148	591	522	58	146	20	3	11	57	0	0	57	48	.280	.348	.393	.741	96	205	20	0	8	4	3	*2/H	AS,AS,GG
1963	28	MIN	AL	147	586	508	64	145	17	1	26	84	0	0	61	75	.285	.369	.476	.845	134	242	16	8	6	3	8	*2/H	AS,MVP-7
1964	29	MIN	AL	131	471	405	33	110	17	1	12	52	1	1	51	49	.272	.348	.407	.756	109	165	23	1	6	8	6	*2/H
1965	30	MIN	AL	131	457	394	36	117	22	2	6	60	0	0	50	23	.297	.375	.409	.783	119	161	7	2	5	5	7	*2/H	AS,MVP-10
1966	31	MI

Butch Wynegar

20	MIN	AL	149	622	534	58	139	21	2	10	69	0	0	79	63	.260	.356	.363	.719	109	194	14	2	4	3	7	*2D/H	AS,MVP-28,RoY-2
1977	21	MIN	AL	144	617	532	76	139	22	3	10	79	2	3	68	61	.261	.344	.370	.715	96	197	11	2	10	5	5	*2/H5	AS
1978	22	MIN	AL	135	522	454	36	104	22	1	4	45	1	0	47	42	.229	.307	.308	.616	73	140	7	6	11	4	2	*2/H5
1979	23	MIN	AL	149	595	504	74	136	20	0	7	57	2	2	74	36	.270	.363	.351	.714	91	177	13	2	11	4	5	*2/HD
1980	24	MIN	AL	146	564	486	61	124	18	3	5	57	3	1	63	36	.255	.339	.335	.675	81	163	9	2	7	6	6	*2/HD

A J Pierzynski

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB	Pos	Awards
1998	21	MIN	AL	7	13	10	1	3	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	2	.300	.385	.300	.685	82	3	0	1	0	1	0	/2H
1999	22	MIN	AL	9	24	22	3	6	2	0	0	3	0	0	1	4	.273	.333	.364	.697	76	8	0	1	0	0	0	/2
2000	23	MIN	AL	33	96	88	12	27	5	1	2	11	1	0	5	14	.307	.354	.455	.809	100	40	1	2	0	1	0	2/H
2001	24	MIN	AL	114	407	381	51	110	33	2	7	55	1	7	16	57	.289	.322	.441	.763	98	168	7	4	1	3	4	*2H/D
2002	25	MIN	AL	130	469	440	54	132	31	6	6	49	1	2	13	61	.300	.334	.439	.773	104	193	14	11	2	3	1	*2H	AS
2003	26	MIN	AL	137	533

Best Twins catcher stats = the Athletic

[Shaitan]

35 minutes ago, mikelink45 said:

For Cooperstown Mauer needs to be seen as a catcher and not his post-concussion play.  Mauer was our best catcher.  To find others we need to go to Brian Harper, Earl Battey, A J and Butch Wynegar. 

Harper and AJ, though, were nowhere near Mauer's defensive ability.

No idea how Battey and Wynegar were on defense. Before my time.

I do agree that he doesn't stand a chance at HOF consideration unless they "ignore" the 1B years. Which won't happen with the current HOF decision makers, but maybe when a younger generation with a better understanding of brain injuries slowly takes over.

[RpR]

Oddly Earl Battey, a very good defender, had his worst two years in errors, the two years he stopped, best in league percentage,  base stealers.

[Blyleven2011]

2 hours ago, Shaitan said:

Harper and AJ, though, were nowhere near Mauer's defensive ability.

No idea how Battey and Wynegar were on defense. Before my time.

I do agree that he doesn't stand a chance at HOF consideration unless they "ignore" the 1B years. Which won't happen with the current HOF decision makers, but maybe when a younger generation with a better understanding of brain injuries slowly takes over.

I disagree  , everyone mikelink45 listed were good defensive catchers and mostly good hitters , Mauer won 3 batting titles  as a catcher  ....

We're they better than Mauer as a catcher   , who was better defensively  at blocking , throwing out runners   , the debate begins ...

[Blyleven2011]

3 hours ago, mikelink45 said:

For Cooperstown Mauer needs to be seen as a catcher and not his post-concussion play.  Mauer was our best catcher.  To find others we need to go to Brian Harper, Earl Battey, A J and Butch Wynegar. 

Brian Harper 

1988	28	MIN	AL	60	182	166	15	49	11	1	3	20	0	3	10	12	.295	.344	.428	.772	114	71	12	3	2	1	1	2H/D5
1989	29	MIN	AL	126	412	385	43	125	24	0	8	57	2	4	13	16	.325	.353	.449	.802	119	173	11	6	4	4	3	2D/H935
1990	30	MIN	AL	134	509	479	61	141	42	3	6	54	3	2	19	27	.294	.328	.432	.760	107	207	20	7	0	4	2	*2D/5H3
1991	31	MIN	AL	123	469	441	54	137	28	1	10	69	1	2	14	22	.311	.336	.447	.783	111	197	14	6	2	6	3	*2/HD37
1992	32	MIN	AL	140	546	502	58	154	25	0	9	73	0	1	26	22	.307	.343	.410	.753	109	206	15	7	1	10	7	*2/HD
1993	33	MIN	AL	147	573	530	52	161	26	1	12	73	1	3	29	29	.304	.347	.425	.772	107	225	15	9	0	5	9	*2H/D
1994	34	MIL	AL	64	267	251	23	73	15	0	4	32	0	2	9	18	.291	.318	.398	.717	81	100	8	3	0	4	1	D2/97H

Earl Battey

1961	26	MIN	AL	133	522	460	70	139	24	1	17	55	3	3	53	66	.302	.377	.470	.847	121	216	18	3	5	1	3	*2/H	GG
1962	27	MIN	AL	148	591	522	58	146	20	3	11	57	0	0	57	48	.280	.348	.393	.741	96	205	20	0	8	4	3	*2/H	AS,AS,GG
1963	28	MIN	AL	147	586	508	64	145	17	1	26	84	0	0	61	75	.285	.369	.476	.845	134	242	16	8	6	3	8	*2/H	AS,MVP-7
1964	29	MIN	AL	131	471	405	33	110	17	1	12	52	1	1	51	49	.272	.348	.407	.756	109	165	23	1	6	8	6	*2/H
1965	30	MIN	AL	131	457	394	36	117	22	2	6	60	0	0	50	23	.297	.375	.409	.783	119	161	7	2	5	5	7	*2/H	AS,MVP-10
1966	31	MI

Butch Wynegar

20	MIN	AL	149	622	534	58	139	21	2	10	69	0	0	79	63	.260	.356	.363	.719	109	194	14	2	4	3	7	*2D/H	AS,MVP-28,RoY-2
1977	21	MIN	AL	144	617	532	76	139	22	3	10	79	2	3	68	61	.261	.344	.370	.715	96	197	11	2	10	5	5	*2/H5	AS
1978	22	MIN	AL	135	522	454	36	104	22	1	4	45	1	0	47	42	.229	.307	.308	.616	73	140	7	6	11	4	2	*2/H5
1979	23	MIN	AL	149	595	504	74	136	20	0	7	57	2	2	74	36	.270	.363	.351	.714	91	177	13	2	11	4	5	*2/HD
1980	24	MIN	AL	146	564	486	61	124	18	3	5	57	3	1	63	36	.255	.339	.335	.675	81	163	9	2	7	6	6	*2/HD

A J Pierzynski

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	OPS+	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB	Pos	Awards
1998	21	MIN	AL	7	13	10	1	3	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	2	.300	.385	.300	.685	82	3	0	1	0	1	0	/2H
1999	22	MIN	AL	9	24	22	3	6	2	0	0	3	0	0	1	4	.273	.333	.364	.697	76	8	0	1	0	0	0	/2
2000	23	MIN	AL	33	96	88	12	27	5	1	2	11	1	0	5	14	.307	.354	.455	.809	100	40	1	2	0	1	0	2/H
2001	24	MIN	AL	114	407	381	51	110	33	2	7	55	1	7	16	57	.289	.322	.441	.763	98	168	7	4	1	3	4	*2H/D
2002	25	MIN	AL	130	469	440	54	132	31	6	6	49	1	2	13	61	.300	.334	.439	.773	104	193	14	11	2	3	1	*2H	AS
2003	26	MIN	AL	137	533

Best Twins catcher stats = the Athletic

Man , look at the walk to strike outs ,,, 

Very impressive  Stat,  especially for a catcher that is suppose to give you defense  and hitting is just a plus ...

Thanks 

[gil4]

8 hours ago, Shaitan said:

Harper and AJ, though, were nowhere near Mauer's defensive ability.

 

5 hours ago, Blyleven2011 said:

I disagree  , everyone mikelink45 listed were good defensive catchers and mostly good hitters , Mauer won 3 batting titles  as a catcher  ....

Harper was a marginal defensive catcher with an above-average bat.  He was Piazza lite (very lite.)

 

AJ didn't have a great defensive rep in Minnesota, but it seemed to improve over the years.  I don't know if it was real improvement, if his rep improved as he stayed at catcher longer, or if he got a bum rap in Minnesota.  My guess is it was real improvement and he became a pretty good catcher.  

[MABB1959]

I think we should have kept Suzuki.