Expecting twins, Mauer excited about fatherhood

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- It's only fitting that catcher Joe Mauer and his wife, Maddie, are expecting twins.

Mauer, who has spent his entire career with the Twins organization since being drafted by his hometown team as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2001 First-Year Player Draft, said he's excited about the prospect of being a father. The couple married in December and the twins are due in late August.

"It's unbelievable," Mauer said. "What a blessing. I'm just very excited and very happy. I really couldn't believe it at first. It's still kind of a shock. It's starting to hit me now that we're starting to tell people. I'm just very excited."

Mauer said he'll wait to find out about the gender of the fraternal twins but joked that it's killing his dad to know. Mauer added that his experience as an uncle will help, as his older brother Billy has three children and his older brother Jake, who manages the organization's Class A team in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, has two kids.

"I'll be doing it all," Mauer said with a smile. "I'm excited for it. I've seen how having kids have changed my brothers. So I've had practice with them. I'm looking forward to it."

Mauer, 29, is having himself another impressive Spring Training, hitting .375 (3-for-8) with a .615 on-base percentage in four games. He's set to leave Twins camp on Sunday for Arizona to join Team USA for the World Baseball Classic.