New York Times – All-Star Catcher Crouches, Waiting for the offers to roll in

StarTribune Blog – Can you blame Joe?

Credit: StarTribune

This past Sunday, the Twins held their annual spring bowling tournament called “Twins And Pins,” a charity event benefiting Habitat For Humanity. Mauer brought his own bowling ball to spring training. He planned on carrying it on the plane, but it didn’t get through security because the X-ray equipment couldn’t penetrate the ball, so he had to check it into baggage. “Twins And Pins” was held in a dingy little bowling alley behind a KFC in Fort Myers. It wasn’t mandatory for Twins players to go to the event, but, of course, Mauer went. And, of course, he is a good bowler.

“You should have seen him, the perfect spin, in the pocket, the pins just exploded when the ball hit them,” said the Twins’ new second baseman Orlando Hudson. “He’s a great bowler.”

Typically for Mauer, he shrugged it off. It was no big deal that he rolled a 205.

The big deal is how he handled the event.

“Here he is, Joe Mauer, the face of the franchise,” said Twins manager Ron Gardenhire. “He couldn’t have been nicer. He had a smile on his face the whole night. And after he rolls another strike, he is high-fiving people that he just met that night at a bowling alley.”

Complete Article at ESPN

While it’s being shaped as Shapiro’s annual visit to spring training, the sides are expected to hold face-to-face discussions about the future of the Twins’ MVP catcher.

Full article at StarTribune

Nothing says fan of the 2009 AL MVP like having his head your hoodie!

Break away from the norm of the average baseball hoodies and get something truly extraordinary.
I first saw the link to this hoodie on twitter a few months ago and said to myself, “I need this and it’s awesome!”
I have never seen anything this unique and fun with something I am a fan of and I am glad I clicked the link.

The hoodie comes in a variety of colors from bright yellow to a nice mauve pink; I bet you just can’t by one!

Click HERE for the link to the Joe Mauer hoodie

For a history about Hollyhoodz and the inspiration behind the Joe Mauer hoodie, please follow this link:

Hollyhoodz is a small business created and owned by John Brennan. A Minneapolis native, John has been screen-printing for 4 years prior to starting Hollyhoodz.  He printed t-shirts and other clothing for local sport teams and businesses but he wanted to do something different.

“I always had to dream of having a clothing line that people would stop me and ask me where I bought my shirt, hoodie, etc. Or something so original that people would stop me for photos. And I thought how cool would it be if people stopped me cause I looked like a celebrity. So I started printing famous people’s faces on the sides of hoodies. And I have been running with the idea ever since then.” – John Brennan

Born from this dream was the Joe Mauer “head” hoodie! So out of all the professional athletes, why Joe Mauer?
“His baseball skills speak for its self. But it’s also cause of what a nice guy he is! When someone sees you will a Joe hoodie on they have nothing bad to say. He’s a great guy and great Baseball player and a wonderful role model. “

Please check out the link below to the Hollyhoodz online store. There are other fun character hoodies and tshirts as well. Hollyhoodz will be endorsed by Joe-Mauer.org and for more info on the Joe Mauer hoodie, check the link on the side panel of the site!

“I went over to Japan in 2006 and had a great time over there,” Mauer said. “The people over there love the game of baseball and they appreciate little things like taking an extra base, base hits. They’re excited and it’s pretty neat to be known over there too.”

Link to article