Hot ticket! Joe Mauer joining Kernels
People tell Cedar Rapids Kernels Manager Jake Mauer all the time that he's a spitting image of his younger brother Joe, a former American League MVP with the Minnesota Twins and a six-time all-star.
Now baseball fans here will get to see for themselves when Joe Mauer joins the Kernels next week on an injury rehab assignment. If all goes well, Mauer will play Tuesday night against Wisconsin.
"I'm ecstatic," said Kernels General Manager Doug Nelson, who anticipates a sellout of more than 5,500 fans at Veterans Memorial Stadium. "When we decided to make the Twins our affiliate, this is one of the situations we were hoping would occur."
Mauer will practice and take batting practice with the Kernels Monday afternoon. If there are no complications, he will play for the Kernels Tuesday night in their Midwest League game at 6:35 p.m.