The Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer has underlined he expects to be ready for the new campaign following kidney surgery. Mauer, who underwent the procedure last month, is optimistic he will feature in the season opener on April 6 against the Seattle Mariners. "I should be ready to go then," Mauer said. "I know what I need to do to be ready for the season." The Twins manager Ron Gardenhire, however, was more cautious over a timetable for the return of the two-time All-Star.
"We are going to take it easy with him," Gardenhire said. "The goal is the opening day. Catchers get a lot of work in spring training and we're going to have to protect him early with all the bullpen sessions." Mauer admitted that he has not done any conditioning or weight training since the operation but is still confident. * With agencies
