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The Twins held the No. 1 selection in the Draft, with USC ace Mark Prior widely considered the consensus top player available. Georgia Tech slugger Mark Teixeira also prominently figured into the conversations. But Radcliff and the Twins were also very familiar with a local high school catcher named Joe Mauer -- and though the Twins drew some criticism for the move at the time, Radcliff selected the hometown kid.

“You're looking at a high school guy versus a polished college pitcher, and we were always looking for pitching,” Ryan said. “Mike ended up saying, 'We're going to take Mauer.'

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