Rod Carew on the mend, pays Twins a visit

ANAHEIM, CALIF. – Rod Carew got caught in traffic on the way to the ballpark Thursday and was late arriving to the Twins dugout before their game with the Angels.

That's OK, because now he has time.

Carew looked better and moved better as he checked in on the Twins for the first time since his heart and kidney transplant in December. Players, coaches and other staff members immediately brightened up as soon as Carew entered the dugout during batting practice. Joe Mauer and Brian Dozier were among those who threw their arms around Carew and spoke with him for a few minutes.

Twins manager Paul Molitor has communicated with Carew a couple of times during season and was pleased his fellow Hall of Famer was at the ballpark.

"Just a big fan of the person and certainly of what he did as a player," Molitor said.

Once batting practice ended, Carew went in the clubhouse and spoke to Twins players for 10 minutes, talking about his ordeal, the faith he had that he would recover and the strength it required to do so.

"It was a moving speech," said Dustin Morse, the Twins senior director of communications.

But the one thing he's back doing is enjoying baseball games.

"Every night," Carew said. "I click through 10 games a night. I'm still interested. But I look for the guys and see how they are doing."

Angel Stadium was where Carew played his final seven major league seasons with the Angels after 12 with the Twins. It's the franchise he was with when he reached 3,000 career hits.

He was present on a night in which Albert Pujols was shooting for his 600th career home run. But Carew made a point to speak highly of a Twins team that, despite coming into the night on a four-game losing streak, entered tied for first place in the American League Central Division.

"I like that the Twins are winning," Carew said. "That's what I look for every day. I have the MLB Network, so I look to see how they are doing, then I see how other guys are doing.

Carew's ordeal began in September 2015 when he suffered a major heart attack while golfing. After the heart attack, Carew was fitted with a left ventricular assist device that helped pump blood. He appeared at TwinsFest in January 2016 as he waited for a heart transplant.

But he dealt with a subdural hematoma in July made it impossible for him to take blood thinners. His wife, Rhonda, and his doctors requested that he be moved up the transplant list, and he had his operation Dec. 16.

Carew now lives with the heart of former NFL player Konrad Reuland, who was working out Dec. 12 when he suffered an aneurysm and died at age 29. His family donated his organs. Carew has become close with the family and is in contact with the Reulands frequently.

Carew expects to be cleared for airline travel in time for him to join Hall of Famers in Cooperstown, N.Y., for the annual ceremonies this summer. And plans are in the works for him to attend a Twins game at Target Field later in the season.