When January Grey was working on the rankings, I doubt he ever thought he’d be setting up February Grey to write an overrated post on Joe Mauer. January Grey, “Don’t be mad cause I’m doing me better than you doing you (repeat 3 times).” Here was a guy (Mauer, not January Grey or Childish Gambino) who hasn’t done well in years. Not just last year. In 2012, he was completely healthy and played in 147 games and notched 545 at-bats. Both marks would be generous to give any everyday player, so it had nothing to do with missing games due to catching. If you said to me you can draft Miguel Cabrera but you’ll only get 147 games and 545 at-bats, I’d take it in a second. In 2012, Mauer was also 29 years old and had Morneau for 134 games and a 35-homer Willingham in the lineup with him. Plouffe hit 24 homers that year and Denard Span and Ben Revere were getting on base and stealing bases. This wasn’t a bad Twins team. Not good, but not bad. They were 16th in the major leagues for runs scored and 10th for OBP. That year Mauer had the stat line of 81/10/85/.319/8. Shoot, I must’ve did something wrong. Hold on, I need to say it louder — That year Mauer had the stat line of 81/10/85/.319/8! Oh, well, I thought balloons might drop from my ceiling after I said his line. Maybe it wasn’t so good even though he had a healthy 545 at-bats. Anyway, why is Joe Mauer overrated for 2014 fantasy baseball?
Last year, Mauer got a year older (crazy!) and missed the last month-plus with a concussion. Now, he’ll be 31 years old and potentially dealing with concussion side effects. Last year, the Twins weren’t nearly as good as the mediocre team they were in 2012. They were 25th in the league in runs and 20th in OBP. Sure, you can argue that Mauer wasn’t around for 6 weeks last year so it hurt the entire Twins team, but if you look at the 2014 Twins lineup and think they’re gonna be good, you’re dopier than you look. I’m honestly confused why some ‘perts have ranked him in the… wait for it, here it comes, hmm, where is it? I thought I put it in my front pocket. Let me go check my glove compartment. Damn, it’s not here either. One second… Oh, crap, I’m a moron, it was in my back pocket the whole time. So, some ‘perts have Joe Mauer in the… 1st round! Okay, that’s bizzonkers. In 2009, he was a legitimate 1st rounder. Hasn’t been since and definitely isn’t now. But, beyond that, ESPN has him ranked 62nd overall, Yahoo has him 57th, and CBS has him other sites have him 46th, 25th or 60th, depending on who you’re reading. A guy on a miserable offensive team coming back from a concussion with catcher eligibility is still a guy with catcher eligibility that is coming back from a concussion on a miserable team. You can cut that a million ways, it’s still yawnstipating. What’s the best case scenario? A .350 average, ten homers, 90 runs, 90 RBIs and 5 steals? That sounds like the best case scenario for Martin Prado too. Yay. High five. Super. Buy yourself an ice cream cone. To think Mauer will suddenly win you a fantasy league because he’s playing 1st base with catcher eligibility is you outsmarting yourself. You’re reaching for things that make you think you’re smart and wily, but really you’re grasping at straws. Joe Mauer is no guarantee for 140+ games at first base just like Morneau wasn’t the year after his concussion and the Twins might be the worst offense the major leagues ever spit up. Do yourself a favor and pass on Mauer even if everyone is telling you he’s going to be great just because he’s at first base.
