By Kelly Thesier / MLB.com

12/17/09 1:35 PM EST

Joe Mauer has one more award to add to his already impressive collection from the 2009 season.

On Thursday, the Twins catcher picked up yet another accolade as he was named the 2009 Hitter of the Year in MLB.com’s annual This Year in Baseball Awards presented by State Farm.

Once again, the fans voted in record numbers when given the chance to weigh in on the season’s best players, plays and moments in the 2009 This Year in Baseball Awards. More than 12.5 million votes were cast, eclipsing last year’s total of 12 million.

Mauer beat out the nine other contenders in the Hitter of the Year category by taking 25.8 percent of the vote. The Yankees’ Derek Jeter finished second with 21.3 percent, followed by the Cardinals’ Albert Pujols with 19.5 percent and the Phillies’ Ryan Howard with 13 percent. Other candidates on the ballot were Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira, Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder, Angels first baseman Kendry Morales, Tigers first baseman Miguel Cabrera, Brewers left fielder Ryan Braun and Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez.

It’s no surprise that fans chose Mauer for the honor after the catcher led the American League in hitting (.365), on-base percentage (.444) and slugging percentage (.587). In addition to becoming the first catcher in Major League history to win three batting titles, Mauer also set career highs in home runs (28) and RBIs (96). And perhaps more impressive, it all happened in a season that didn’t even begin for Mauer until May 1 after he missed the entire first month due to lower-back inflammation.

“The year Joe had was just incredible,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said last month. “It’s almost hard to wrap your mind around where he now stands in the history of the game. I know what he means to our ballclub and our organization. But I think everybody nationally is starting to get a little bit of a feel now how really, really good this guy is.”

The Hitter of the Year honor finished off what was already a very impressive awards season for the Twins catcher. Mauer was named the AL’s Most Valuable Player by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America for the first time in his career. He was also named the AL Player of the Year by the MLB Players Association and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and the catcher won a Gold Glove and a Sliver Slugger as well.

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Congratulations Joe!