FORT MYERS, Fla. -- J.J. Hardy's initial reaction when he was traded to the Twins in early November was to think of which players he knew on Minnesota's roster.
The first one that came to mind was pretty easy for Hardy, considering that he and Twins catcher Joe Mauer have been good friends since they were around 17 years old.
The two players first met in Hermosillo, Mexico, in 2000 while playing as teammates on the under-18 Pan-American Games squad. Both of them were finishing up their junior years of high school and found themselves hitting it off right away.
Mauer went on to be drafted No. 1 overall by the Twins in the 2001 First-Year Player Draft while Hardy was a second-round pick of the Brewers that same year. But before that happened, the two would play on many of the same teams in international competition over the next year. They were even roommates back in 2000 when the U.S. Junior National team took the silver medal in the IBAF Junior World Championship in Edmonton, Canada.
"We have the same type of personality so I guess we hung out a little bit more than some of the other guys," Hardy said. "We became pretty good friends. And then playing against each other for the last five years, we've always made a point to see each other before the game or during [batting practice]. We've stayed in touch that way."
The two have reconnected even more since Hardy joined the Twins. Mauer traveled to Arizona in November, shortly after the trade was made, to play in Harmon Killebrew's annual charity golf outing. He used the trip as a chance to catch up with Hardy, who makes his home in the Phoenix area. The two played a couple rounds of golf along with another teammate, Nick Punto, who also winters in Arizona.
Mauer also tried to help introduce Hardy to many of his new teammates after the shortstop arrived in Fort Myers to begin working out earlier this month. The catcher then invited Hardy come to Minnesota for a week before Spring Training officially started, using it as an opportunity to show the shortstop around the Twin Cities, while also taking him ice fishing at his cabin.
"He showed me some areas up there, mostly St. Paul where he grew up," Hardy said. "He's really helped me a lot adjusting here."
Thanks to Hardy's friendship with Mauer, his transition to the Twins has been smooth. But what remains to be seen is whether he can use this new start to rebound from what was a tough 2009 season.
Hardy was an All-Star with the Brewers in 2007 and he combined for 50 home runs and 154 RBIs between the '07 and '08 seasons. His career seemed to be taking off, when Hardy suffered a setback last season. The shortstop batted just .229 with 11 homers and 47 RBIs while also earning a 20-day demotion to the Minors in August.
"I feel like I had some time this offseason to sit back and think about what happened and I was able to make some adjustments," Hardy said. "I took a few things from last year, but for the most part I wanted to forget about it and act like it never happened. I just wanted to go back to the way I was in the years past."
Notorious for his slow starts to the season, Hardy said that there were two things he believes played a factor in his struggles in 2009. One was his mental approach to the season. As he did in '08, Hardy got off to a poor start, batting .156 in April, but this time he didn't allow himself to shake it off. He batted .228 in June and July, and then .190 in August before he was demoted.
"I think I was really tough on myself," Hardy said. "I didn't allow myself to have fun. I got off to a really, really bad start, and I pressed a lot more. It didn't work."
Hardy said he started putting pressure on himself to put together perfect days at the plate, where even a two-hit day was not enough. He said some of that changed during his Minor League stint in August, which left him a couple service days shy of being a free agent after this season. By going down to Triple-A Nashville, Hardy was able to shake some of the pressure he was placing upon himself.
"I was pressing so much, I wasn't having fun. The game was going 100 miles an hour for me," Hardy said. "When I got sent down, those 20 days I actually had fun with some of those guys in Triple-A. It was a good time. Obviously it wasn't where I wanted to be, but being able to relax and play the game again was fun."
After watching lots of video this offseason, Hardy also determined that he needed to make a slight mechanical alteration to his swing.
"I was pushing off my backside a lot and kind of jumping toward the pitcher," Hardy said. "I worked on that this offseason and I feel a lot better."
The winter has helped Hardy to put behind him what he calls a "fluke" year. He's been able to figure out some of the things that might have plagued him last year. He also has the ease of knowing he'll no longer be plagued by the trade rumors that have followed him in Milwaukee over the past two years.
"I'm just excited about this situation I'm in now," Hardy said. "Coming to a great team, having the new start, it's just going to be great."
Having Mauer as one of his best friends on the team certainly doesn't hurt Hardy either. But Mauer doesn't feel like Hardy needs his help in the slightest, and he's the first to express confidence that Hardy won't suffer a repeat of last season.
"I don't want to put a lot of expectations on him or anything like that, but he's a good ballplayer," Mauer said. "He's proven that back when we were 17, and he proved it back in the big leagues a couple of years ago. I think it's just having him get his offense back. I think a change of scenery is good for guys and I think he'll thrive here."
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