By AJ Mass, ESPN.com

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Normally after an MRI, when a team learns that one of their players has an inflamed joint in their back and might not be ready to play by Opening Day, they're upset. In the case of Joe Mauer, the Twins are actually quite relieved. Mauer, who led all American League hitters with a .328 batting average last season, had surgery in December to remove a kidney obstruction, and when he was unable to run without pain, the team feared the worst. "`Yeah. We were thinking it could be something huge, the way it has been going," manager Ron Gardenhire told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He added that team doctors were going to step up the medication Mauer has been taking in an effort to get him on the field as quickly as possible. "I don't know what he's been taking, but they are going to go with something more aggressive."

Read full story | Create Your Profile

Sort comments by: Most Recent | First Posted