Expecting twins of his own, Mauer returns to Twin Cities

ANAHEIM, CALIF. – Joe Mauer left one group of Twins for his own twins.

Mauer was a late scratch from Tuesday night's game when his wife, Maddie, went into labor. Mauer was taking batting practice about an hour before the game when he was told the news. The couple wasn't expecting the children to be born until late August.

Mauer immediately left the team and will be gone indefinitely. Rookie Chris Herrmann replaced Mauer in the lineup.

Herrmann hit a 10th inning grand slam in the Twins' 10-3 victory over Los Angeles.

The Mauers were wed in December and said in March that they were expecting twins.

Outfielder Oswaldo Arcia or catcher Drew Butera were candidates to replace Mauer on the roster. Arcia was pulled from Class AAA Rochester's game in the second inning Tuesday. Butera hasn't played for the Twins this year after spending time with them each of the past three seasons.

Mauer's absence was a relief for the Angels. He is 11-for-14 against them this season, including three hits Monday.

Etc.

• It's the final week before the July 31 nonwaiver trade deadline, so the rumors are going to get hot and heavy. A report out of Atlanta has the Braves interested in lefthander Brian Duensing. The Pirates and Tigers are also among the teams looking for bullpen help. There are indications that the Twins are willing to move Ryan Doumit if the price is right. Doumit is having a down year offensively, but he is versatile and can switch hit.

• After Monday's game, the Twins held a brief ceremony for infielder Doug Bernier. At age 33, he was called up last week. In his second game with the Twins (fourth major league game overall), he got his first MLB hit — a double — and first RBI. Manager Ron Gardenhire made sure Bernier was recognized after the game. "It was real exciting," Bernier said. "I played in a lot of minor league parks for 11, 12 years. For something like that — just to get another chance to get back up here and get a hit and help contribute and help the team win — it was really special."