COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. — When Joe Mauer first stepped foot inside the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, he was bright-eyed rookie looking to carve out a career of his own.
The Minnesota Twins were in Cooperstown, N.Y. to play the Atlanta Braves in the 2004 Hall of Fame Game, so players were given a “white glove” tour of the museum.
“They rolled out the red carpet,” Mauer recalled.
Three years after the Minnesota Twins selected him with the No. 1 overall pick, Mauer found himself holding a few priceless pieces of MLB history, including bats used by Ted Williams and Babe Ruth.
“I just remember as a 20-year-old thinking how cool it was and how special it was to do that,” said Mauer.
He returned a few years ago for the induction of Twins greats Tony Oliva and Jim Kaat, marking the first time he’d been in Cooperstown for an induction weekend.
“That’s a very special week,” Mauer said. “The town is buzzing. Cooperstown is just so fitting for the Hall of Fame, and for the game, really. It’s the perfect setting and there’s a lot of excitement.”
This weekend will no doubt be another special week for Mauer as he’s enshrined as part of the Class of 2024. His induction on Sunday will make him the fourth St. Paul native to Cooperstown, N.Y., following in the footsteps of Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor and Jack Morris.
“It’s pretty crazy,” Mauer said. “I’ll be mentioning them in my speech … When I was a kid, I got to watch them play in the big leagues – they were some of my favorite players.”
Winfield, who grew up just south of Mauer's childhood home, was perhaps one of the best all-around athletes to have ever come from St. Paul. He played college basketball at the University of Minnesota and was drafted by four pro teams in three different sports in 1973 – the Minnesota Vikings (NFL), Atlanta Hawks (NBA), Utah Stars (ABA) and the San Diego Padres (MLB) – before putting together a Hall of Fame career in baseball.
Molitor grew up just down the road on Portland Avenue, played high school ball at Cretin and followed in Winfield’s footsteps by attending the University of Minnesota. Molitor was first drafted to be a pitcher in 1974, but instead chose to play college baseball with the Gophers, where he became an All-American shortstop. The Milwaukee Brewers selected Molitor in the first round, and more than 3,000 hits later, he joined Winfield in the Hall of Fame.
Morris was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2018 after winning three World Series, including one with the Twins. In fact, his Game 7 outing in the 1991 World Series is still considered to be one of the greatest pitching performances in baseball – a 10-inning shutout to earn him the World Series MVP.
“Minnesota is not the first state that would come to mind with big league ballplayers, but we’ve had some really good ones,” said Mauer. “As a kid growing up there in St. Paul, watching three guys play at the highest level – winning championships and doing some special things in the game – made me dream and made me say that this could become a reality.”
Now, Mauer is among those players named as some of St. Paul’s finest. All four played at least one season with the Twins, but only Mauer was in Minnesota for the entirety of his pro career.
After making a name for himself as a multi-sport star at Cretin-Derham High School (former KARE 11 anchor Randy Shaver considered Mauer one of the best high school quarterbacks he'd ever covered), Mauer became one of the best catchers in baseball, and his three Gold Gloves can prove it. His command at the plate was unprecedented – the only catcher to win three batting titles – and he's among only a few backstops in history to have ever won an MVP.
In his 15 years, Mauer was a six-time All-Star, won the Silver Slugger Award five times, captured three batting titles, three Gold Gloves and was the AL MVP in 2009. He later shifted over to first base for the final seasons of his career, but threw on the catcher's gear one last time in his final game on Sept. 30, 2018, capping a career that would eventually land him in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
"Leading up to that last weekend – I think it was a night or two before – my longtime friend, bullpen catcher Nate Dammann and Derek Shelton, our bench coach, called me into Molly's office," said Mauer, referring to Molitor, who was managing the Twins at the time. "They kind of came up with this idea of catching one last pitch, and when they brought it up, I started to kind of cry."
Mauer admitted that he wasn't certain if it was going to be his last game, his focus was on finishing out the season on a high note. But now, looking back on it six years later, he said it was the perfect way to wrap up his 15-year career.
"I don't think it could have ended any better," said Mauer.
BELOW: One year before Mauer received the call to the Hall, KARE 11 profiled St. Paul's prolific baseball history: