Catch Twins' rising star

Expect St. Paul native Mauer behind the plate April 5

Jake Mauer's youngest son, Joe, was barely out of diapers when he began swinging at a baseball.

"He hit the ball pretty good when he was 3 years old. He could always hit," Jake Mauer said. "We'll see now how good he is."

We'll all see, starting April 5. Mark that day on your 2004 calendars. That's when Joe Mauer and the Minnesota Twins open the regular season at the Metrodome with the first game in a three-game series against the Cleveland Indians.

The Twins are being coy about whether Mauer will be their starting catcher on Opening Day, but anyone who knows a baseball glove from an oven mitt can tell you St. Paul's latest in a string of great athletes will be behind the plate. The Twins sure didn't trade A.J. Pierzynski so Matt LeCroy or Rob Bowen could become their everyday catcher.

Just as St. Paul natives Dave Winfield, Jack Morris and Paul Molitor once did, Mauer is expected to glisten in the major leagues. Right before your eyes, he could become the first homegrown Minnesotan since Kent Hrbek to be a standout for the Twins.

"That's really neat," Jake Mauer said. "My wife (Teresa) and I grew up watching the Twins, and for us to have our kids play for the Twins is kind of cool."

It's kind of cool for Twins fans, too. Joe's older brothers, Jake and Billy, are in the Twins' minor-league system. Jake is an infielder, and Billy pitches. Their baseball careers will be a bit tougher to track than Joe's, which will be in full view of Minnesotans.

"Each player gets four tickets to home games, so he better have Mom and Dad on the list," Jake Mauer said.

After a brilliant high school career as a football, basketball and baseball player at Cretin-Derham Hall, Joe Mauer was the first overall selection in the 2001 baseball draft. The Twins took some flak for not selecting pitcher Mark Prior, who went second overall to the Chicago Cubs. In his first full season as a Cubs starter in 2003, Prior had the look of a multiple Cy Young Award winner for the league's best pitcher and a future Hall of Famer. Now Mauer gets his chance to make a mark on more than just your calendar.

"There's still a lot of controversy over us not taking Prior," said Twins general manager Terry Ryan. "We've never had to justify the pick. There are probably a dozen clubs who had Mauer up there as the No. 1 pick."

Mauer put up impressive statistics in his two minor-league seasons. The expectation is he will do the same thing in the majors.

Mauer, 20, has a chance to become the best young catcher in the majors since Hall of Famer Johnny Bench won Rookie of the Year honors with the Cincinnati Reds in 1968 at age 20. In 2003, Mauer's combined .339 average for Class A Fort Myers and Class AA New Britain was the highest of any minor leaguer younger than 21 and better than any catcher in the minors.

"Joe Mauer was picked first in the country for a reason," Ryan said. "He has a good feel for the game."

And Minnesotans should get a good feeling from watching Mauer's major-league career unfold in 2004.