Any hopes the Twins have of being a competitive team this season and beyond begin with first baseman Justin Morneau and catcher Joe Mauer, two former American League MVP’s who might just have copies on their nightstands of Reverend Robert Schuller’s book Tough Times Never Last But Tough People Do.
The Twins are short on talent throughout the organization and if the “M&M Boys” don’t produce as in the past, Minnesota is in trouble. No, Morneau and Mauer can’t carry the team to the post-season alone but when they play like All-Stars the Twins are much more productive at the plate and in the field. And their production eases the physical and mental burdens on teammates.
Last summer Morneau was approaching career numbers when he suffered his now famous concussion. He was batting .345 with 18 home runs and 56 RBI.
His recovery from the concussion was slow and there was uncertainty about his return to the team. Although Morneau has played in 43 games, he has struggled with his hitting and even at times in the field. A career .283 hitter, he’s batting .230 with two home runs and 13 RBI.
This spring Morneau is so frustrated he has probably made his baseball life worse than it needs to be. He badly wants to be a leader for the Twins and bail out a ballclub with a 16-32 record, the worst in the big leagues.
Want a picture of a guy trying too hard? Grab a camera and point it at the 30-year-old Morneau who in his best season (2006) hit .321 with 34 home runs and 130 RBI, and won the AL MVP award. Trying to recover from the long layoff from the concussion meant regaining his timing at the plate and in the field. And Morneau was hit by the flu bug this spring and lost weight. Now he even has a sore neck, no doubt a repository of his tension.
The mental weight of trying to carry his team has been a setback, too, and one that can best be cured by this prescription: “Chill out a bit, young fella.”