Joe Mauer has announced his retirement from the Minnesota Twins after spending the last fifteen years with the organization. All fifteen years of his career, Mauer played for the Twins and he has officially announced that he’s calling it quits.
Joe Mauer pens personal letter to #MNTwins fans: https://t.co/sSC7u1PZbf pic.twitter.com/QS8L55kLrL
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 9, 2018
Mauer played in 127 games in 2018 batting .282, driving in 48 RBI’s and had an on-base percentage of .351 for the Twins. In the final series of 2018, Mauer caught for the Twins after not catching since the 2013 season. It was a fitting send-off for the hometown kid, who spent his whole career with the Twins organization. Over the course of his fifteen seasons with the Twins, Mauer was a six-time all-star, five-time silver slugger winner, three-time gold glove winner, and also took home the American League MVP award in 2009.
One of the downsides to Mauer’s career was his struggle with concussions, he was forced to move to first base and become a designated hitter after a foul ball sidelined him with a concussion in 2013. This was one of the things that Mauer mentioned in his statement regarding his retirement. Mauer said, “The decision came down to my health and my family. The risk of concussion is always there, and I was reminded of that this season after missing over 30 games as a result of diving for a foul ball.” and it was evident after his move to first base in 2014, that injuries were something that Mauer feared.
