With 10 games left in the Twins dismal 2013 regular season, this is the definition of a “lame duck” story.
Nevertheless, we will bring them to you, because we’d rather talk about anything except their on-field performance.
Firstly, catcher Joe Mauer, who has missed exactly one month of games while recovering from a concussion.
Mauer, who was set to return two weeks ago before suffering a setback after going through a series of workouts at Target Field, looks like he still may play before these next 10 days go by.
He is reportedly no longer suffering from headaches and other concussion symptoms, and is expected to rejoin the team Monday in Minneapolis barring any further setbacks.
General Manager Terry Ryan would not comment on whether Mauer would be catching, or if they’d keep him from behind the dish for precautionary purposes.
Third baseman Trevor Plouffe was pulled from the eighth inning of yesterday’s late night loss to Oakland, with what is being tagged as left wrist soreness.
Plouffe admitted after the game that he has been playing through the pain in his wrist since the middle of June, which is when he returned from a calf strain that landed him on the DL.
While not blaming the wrist injury for his disappointing 2013, his offensive struggles since he came off the disabled list have been evident.
In July and August he didn’t hit over .200, and while he’s had a good September, his performance last night was a microcasm of a forgettable second half, going 0-5 with three strikeouts.
Plouffe is day-to-day and said he hopes to return to the lineup Friday.
