Jul 20, 2024; Cooperstown, New York, USA; Hall of Fame inductee Joe Mauer during the Parade of Legends in Cooperstown, NY. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports

‘One of the most complete catchers in the game's history': Joe Mauer enshrined in HOF

Originally posted on Minnesota Twins on SI
By Tony Liebert | Last updated Jul 21, 2024 4:17 PM ET

Minnesota legend Joe Mauer was officially enshrined into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday, becoming the seventh player wearing a Twins hat to be inducted.

In classic Mauer form, he spent his speech thanking every person who helped him become one of the best Minnesota-born athletes of all time. It was short, to the point and concise, without any drama.

Across 15 seasons with his hometown Twins, Mauer posted a .306 batting average, .388 on-base percentage and .439 slugging percentage. He finished with 2,123 hits and 923 RBIs. His three batting titles are the most by a catcher in MLB history.

Mauer earned 76.1% of the votes on the National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot earlier this year, leading to him being enshrined on his first ballot. He joins Johnny Bench and Ivan Rodriguez as the only first-ballot HOF catches in baseball history.

Welcome to baseball immortality, Joe Mauer. pic.twitter.com/ck0p4enKJa
— National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) July 21, 2024

After being the No. 1 overall pick in 2001 coming out of Cretin-Derham Hall High School in St. Paul, he went on to have one of the best careers as a catcher in MLB history. He is officially the fourth St. Paul native to wind up in Cooperstown, joining Paul Molitor, Jack Morris and Dave Winfield.

This article first appeared on Minnesota Twins on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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