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Is Buxton Ready To Go?


Ted Schwerzler

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Baseball and the Minnesota Twins, have watched as the number one prospect has scuffled in his first few tastes of the big leagues. Byron Buxton has just 63 major league games under his belt, but they've gone anything but according to plan. Following his latest Triple-A stint though, is a corner about to be turned?

 

Having won the starting centerfield job out of the gate, Byron Buxton was given the reigns for the Twins. He played a strong centerfield as was expected, but turned in a dismal .156/.208/.289 slash line through 17 games. His 24/2 strikeout to walk ratio was among the worst on the club, and he was struggling to get anything going.

 

For the mega-prospect, the problem was really just getting that bat to the ball. He owned a 26.3% line drive rate, and was putting the ball on the ground an equal 26.3% of the time through his first 17 games. With the amount of speed at his disposal, that's truly a decent recipe for success. Unlike teammates such as Eddie Rosario, Buxton wasn't chasing bad pitches either. His 28.6% O-Swing suggested he had a fairly decent grasp on the zone. The problem was, actually getting to those pitches he knew to swing at.

 

Prior to his demotion, Buxton totaled a 13.9% swinging strike percentage, while making contact on just 68.5% of his swings. If he was a big time power guy, those numbers would be far from terrible. The reality is however, that's not his game, and eventually led to his downfall.

 

Fast forward to where we are now, and Buxton has made adjustments that have him looking like a different hitter. Having incorporated a leg kick at Triple-A Rochester, his timing looks to be much smoother. Through 24 games, he's slashing .333/.394/.576. His average in the month of May is north of .380, and his last 10 games have seen him hit nearly .500. Buxton's new timing mechanism has aided him to the tune of 6 homers in his last 17 games, and he's found extra gap power as well. The transformation that has taken place is Buxton fulfilling the expectations that were laid out for him.

 

While the offensive numbers are all exciting, it's the adjustment to his strikeouts that create the most reason for promise. Having struck out in 49% of his MLB plate appearances in 2016, he's lowered that percentage to just 22% at Triple-A. He's taking more walks, and Buxton noted that one of his adjustments has been to stop swinging at pitches he doesn't believe he can do anything with.

 

Considering the outfield that the Twins currently employ, Buxton's emergence is pushing for a role back at the top. Miguel Sano is entrenched in RF, but the LF and CF spots are far from locked down. Danny Santana has been in over his head as a starter in center, and he figures in best when used as a super utility option. Getting Buxton back up to man the middle, while letting the other pieces fall where they may, is in the Twins best interest.

 

The Georgia native hasn't been on the farm too terribly long, but it would appear he's made significant strides and figured something out. A return to the Twins as they come back home to play the Rays on June 2nd would seem to make a lot of sense. Terry Ryan and Paul Molitor want to see this version of Byron Buxton helping the Twins, and it sure seems like he's got the right approach to make that happen.

 

It's a rare occasion when a guy comes up and gets it right away. Sometimes the process is a bit slower of a transition than you would hope. In reality though, Buxton is a 22 year old future superstar, and it may very well be that the third time is the charm.

 

For more from Off The Baggy, click here. Follow @tlschwerz

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I would give him another three weeks or about 100 AB more in AAA. I am very encouraged with his numbers in AAA, but a little seasoning in a completely waste of a year isn't going to kill him.

 

In the past it seems like the Twins really want certain guys to make it. Like Aaron Hicks. They would send him to AAA and he would sputter along, then after a good 7-10 days they would bring him right back. Gomez was rushed, Hicks was rushed, etc. Even Sano has struggled this year after ripping the cover off the ball last year.

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NO!!  Leave him be, let him get a couple hundred ABs in a place he can handle.  Don't yo-yo him back up and put him in the pressure-cooker and watch him flail again.  Let him concentrate on his pitch recognition and lowering his K rate where the stakes aren't as high.  We already know his speed and D are sound, but give him time to focus on what's been keeping him out of the majors so far.

 

He ain't gonna save this season.  Superman, Batman, Spiderman, and Wonder Woman together couldn't save this season.  (Nor could Aquaman, if only for the post-game gatorade baths).  

 

All that said, I want to look at a Twins lineup by mid-August though, and see Bux, Kep, Park, Sano, and maybe Vargas.  I want to see Berrios, Duffey, Meyer, or Chargois on the hill.  I want to not see Dozier, Plouffe, Zuke, Mastro, (or whatever other 5th OF they find from the bargain bin, sorry, Grossman), Nolasco, Hughes, or even Gibson, and I want to see Joe on the bench and PH'ing.  (Unless he wakes up as the April Joe of earlier this year).

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July 1st is the day the Twins start looking at prospects moving up EVERYWHERE. You start making room for them at All-Star break at the latest and by the end of July you have anyone on the roster who will start the 2017 season on the roster. You also prepare for having September callups coming from all those guys you advanced in the system in July, adding as many as you can to the expanded roster, especially those that you expect to add anyways.

 

Yes, you MIGHT keep few names around like Grossman, add Beresford, one or two of the bullpen arms (Rogers, Abad) to lop off come time.

 

You know your chances are slim to none that you will add ANY free agents, unless you bring in a veteran backstop (A.J.'s farewell) or a grizzled vet to light some sparks in the bullpen or off the bench. But, wait, we have Mauer who can be that bench guy!

 

 

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Now there is no point in doing anything with him until maybe the beginning of July. Then the whole thing has got to come up and this team can FINALLY engage in a proper rebuild where they play all the young guys for the last three months.

Trade Plouffe, Nunez, and Abad, minimally. Hopefully some others will have legit trade value as well.

 

Buxton, Kepler, Polanco need to be up July 1 to be the future. With Sano at 3B.

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