Durable, experienced Kurt Suzuki gains trust with Minnesota Twins pitchers

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Kurt Suzuki doesn’t aspire to be the next Joe Mauer. According to the Minnesota Twins, Suzuki shouldn’t have to.

“We wanted to add some leadership to help the pitching staff,” Minnesota Twins assistant general manager Rob Antony said of signing Suzuki to a one-year, $2.75 million deal as the team’s primary catcher. Mauer has the rest of this week to complete his conversion to being full-time first baseman.

“We went out and got some starting pitching, but we also wanted somebody to help them on defense,” Antony said of signing Suzuki. “With Joe moving to first, we were willing to sacrifice some offense for defense.”

Mauer won three American League batting titles and sports a lifetime batting average of .323.

Suzuki has a career batting average of .253. He hit a combined .232 with five homers and 32 RBI last season with the Washington Nationals and the Oakland A’s, the team that groomed him and gave him his first six seasons of experience out of Cal-State Fullerton as a second-round draft pick in 2004.

Aside from his offensive inefficiencies, few catchers have been more durable or effective behind the plate than Suzuki, who fares much better in the durability department than Mauer.

Suzuki has…

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