Joe Mauer took batting practice prior to last night’s game, but told reporters that there’s still no timetable for his return despite “feeling a lot better.”
Here’s more from Mauer on his status:Today was kind of my first day getting on the field a little bit, moving around, and it was a good day. That [viral infection] really did push me back quite a bit. When it was all said and done, I lost around 15 pounds. I lost a lot of strength, so that probably pushed me back a week or a couple weeks.
I’m feeling a lot better now. I’m getting my strength back and my weight back, so hopefully I can get back on the field. You’ve got to get back into baseball shape. But yeah, I still got some work to do, and I wish I knew when I would be back, and I know everybody else wishes too, but you just got to keep going in the right direction.
Mauer and Twins trainer Rick McWane have both admitted that he wasn’t physically ready for Opening Day due to offseason knee surgery, but unsuccessfully played anyway until shutting it down after nine games.
In his absence Drew Butera, Steve Holm, and Rene Rivera have hit a combined .102 with zero homers and a .136 slugging percentage. For comparison, National League pitchers have hit .133 with a .167 slugging percentage this season.
