Mauer Outage

Agreed but he's also not killing the team right now. He's providing a useful skill at a position where we thought the Twins had a roster crunch but, as it turns out...

If Sano had been moved to 1B we may be watching Polanco play third or short. His OBP is nice, but not nice enough for a 1B.

I'd prefer to keep Sano at third for as long as possible. In a lost season, we may as well find out if he can hack it at a more premium position.

 

Getting Polanco playing time would be nice but with Park in Rochester and Sano in Minnesota, I think the long-term play is Miguel at third (if possible).

 

Either way, it's not something I'm going to get too riled up about. As long as Sano stays in the infield, I'm moderately happy.

Yeah, I want Polanco up, but I think BD is probably the route best served to get him up.  And I have to think BD can generate a decent return.  Keep Sano at 3rd for now.  Mauer, yeah, he's a problem on the team. Not one that is going to get fixed this season, or quite possibly the next two.  Hopefully new management moves him more to a bench role as better options are available.  It's an expensive bench role, but given his production, it has to be considered... unless of course he's suddenly amenable to going back behind the plate.

I don't get the strawman that saying Mauer is not good enough at 1B, means we HATE him......

WAR rankings for 1B:

2016: 13th

2015: 18th

2014: 14th

If every Twins player ranked at or below median....how good would the team be, really? Don't forget, that's among qualified players, of which there are about 23-25 a year.....

He's ok, median or so.....but he's not "good" compared to other 1B.

Here is the point people are trying to make. Nobody on these boards says Joe isn't overpaid. Nobody. Everyone would like Joe to hit for more power. Everyone.

He has a guaranteed contract with a no trade clause. He's not going anywhere and he contributes enough to be playing. Get over it.

Either way, it's not something I'm going to get too riled up about. As long as Sano stays in the infield, I'm moderately happy.

Sano to catcher, you say?

Here is the point people are trying to make. Nobody on these boards says Joe isn't overpaid. Nobody. Everyone would like Joe to hit for more power. Everyone.
He has a guaranteed contract with a no trade clause. He's not going anywhere and he contributes enough to be playing. Get over it.

Reminds me a lot of Todd Helton's contract in COL.

Maker's decline also correlates directly to getting married and having a family. No judgment, just fact.

This observation by no means is saying it is his wife or children's fault. It has to do, as all that have a wife and or family come to know, that there are now additional compartments that need focus, and they should be just as important if not more important than baseball, especially when your contract is guaranteed.

Some of you are trying desperately hard to muddy up the waters in this discussion. He is an AL 1B with a .372 SLG % and 29 RBIs after 93 games. He might not even get 50 RBIs, and he's on pace for 150+ games. There is no argument to fight this ineptitude. 

 

Serious question: How low will the slugging percentage need to drop until the lack of performance becomes unacceptable - even for the apologists? 

 

* .350? 

* .325? 

 

If his slugging percentage were to fall to .325, would it be acceptable to rip him then? Yes, he has a decent glove and takes a walk now and then. No one is arguing that. There is value to that. Those assets were valuable for a few years for Nick Punto, but Mauer's numbers, as an AL 1B, are clearly terrible. 

Just glancing at his splits, his OBP has been higher than his SLG in 3 out of 4 months. I don't even know what to make of that but it sounds bizarre for a 1B/DH. That has to be highly unusual outside of speedy SS/CF types and pitchers.

First of all, I have always been a Mauer fan and supporter. And I dont care about the value of his contract. He earned his money fairly. It's not his fault his career has taken a dive due to his concussions (plus wear and tear) Get over the hate. And I've previously argued that fine defense at 1B, contact, and quality OB have a place in the lineup. There are many ways to build a roster/lineup, and not every position on every team is stocked by a player who is pigeon-holed in to a certain type.

And while I wholeheartedly agree Sano IS a 3B, and is OK there, and will get better, (little weight loss would probably help), and any move to QB is probably years away, I do see a potential problem at 1B/DH. There are a lot of unknowns here to be uncovered still. But Vargas is not some fly by night washed out prospect. He's young, has some real potential, has a nice milb track history of production, showed his potential in 2014, but had a rough 2015. Park has real potential. Fully healthy, we may not be even debating his worth at this point. And he has a nice glove at 1B. Palka appears to have nice potential, and may have been a steal. Walker is an enigma, but an enigma who has produced at every level, seems to be making some adjustments, and shouldn't be counted out even if he needs more AAA time, or a full season, in 2017. Additionally, a team doesn't HAVE to have a full time DH. But if you've got real depth in the OF and 1B, you can roll everyone for half days off through the DH spot.

Unfortunately, Mauer's skills as a batter have diminished greatly. I won't bag on him for his OB or good defense. Those are fine things. But are those things enough to continue taking up a roster spot these next two seasons when we may actually have good young hitters knocking on the door? I don't know if trying to move him to a team with a chance to compete for the next couple of years is the answer, (with his blessing and eating dollars of course), or attempting a buyout to move on, or suggested retirement are the answers. But I'm just not sure he fits with the future direction of this team any longer.