Twins And Joe Mauer Getting Awful Close?

We already knew that negotiations between Minnesota and Joe Mauer were going well. Turns out "well" may have been selling things short. Writes Joe Christensen:

Everybody I spoke with during TwinsFest believes the team soon will have Joe Mauer signed to a contract extension. Two people (on the fringes), who have their own information pipelines, claimed that the deal's basic framework -- the number of years and guaranteed money -- is already set, with the sides negotiating things such as deferred payments, etc.

Christensen makes sure later on to emphasize that this is only fringe source information, but then he adds:

Mauer said Friday he doesn't want his contract to become a distraction for the team. But there is hardly widespread panic that the Twins are going to lose him to free agency.

I'm confident an extension is coming. It's a matter of when, not if.

The Twins don't get many opportunities to act like a big-money organization. Re-signing Joe Mauer, however, would be a huge, huge move.