Byron Buxton: The Heart and Soul of These Twins

I love the guy. Humble and hardworking with a great attitude. We are lucky he was willing to sign that contract. 

I am an old guy and can remember how awed I was to see Willie Mays play centerfield.  He made it look so effortless that even tough catches were made to look routine.  I have seen a lot of great centerfielders since Willie, but Byron is the only one I would put in his class.  He is just an incredible talent and truly a generational player.  More importantly, he is a great human being.  We all pray that he has good health this summer.  If he does, Katy bar the door.

There is soo much to like about Buxton.  Maybe I am goofy but I like that he calls Minnesota home.  I love the State and it makes me like Buxton even more for calling Minnesota and its tough winters home.  I like that he has strong character and is willing to prove that character by believing in himself to the point of taking that incentive laden contract as well as the way he handled his contract situation. That he continues to get better despite the many setbacks he has faced.  The fact that his attitude is so positive after all the injury adversity he has faced.  The fact that he is well liked by his teammates and that he has their backs.  I like that he is confident but not arrogant that he has a certain humility about him.

Beyond all those admirable traits I just love watching him play whether he is robbing some player of a hit or taking a pitcher deep or beating out an infield ground ball it is just fun to watch him play.  He certainly has my respect as a person and a player and I am happy he will be around longer than I thought he might be.

CF and C are the two most important places on the field.  SS used to be with them, but with all the shifts and the emphasis on fly balls CF has risen and SS has dropped in importance.  (I still want a good SS) And Buxton has taken this command post and made it something special. 

Buck is the protagonist of the Twins and everyone else is a supporting player. He's a hero to the 
Twins and a hero to this state, and his loyalty to the Twins deserves to be rewarded with a World Series ring.

I like what Martin Luther King said that " A man should be judged by the integrity of one's heart not by the color of his skin", Integrity of Buxton's heart is above approach. He's an exceptional man on and off the field. He's overcome many adversities from injuries to coaches who want to fine tune his swing. It's amazing that he wants to stay in Minnesota, Minnesota is blessed to have him. Now that everything is set, I'm looking forward to many years of Buxton gracing us with his presence.

Buxton is must see baseball that is for sure. He reminds me of when Johan used to take the mound. You stopped what you were doing to watch because at any time something spectacular might happen. Finally he has figured it out. Now lets hope he stays healthy. 

I can agree with all the positives.  Still, this is the second “nice guy” face of the franchise in the last 10 years (Joe Mauer before BB).  Byron doesn’t have to go full AJ or Josh. He plays with reckless abandon already.  Yet, wouldn’t a little “edge” sometimes help?   

5 hours ago, RJA said:

I am an old guy and can remember how awed I was to see Willie Mays play centerfield.  He made it look so effortless that even tough catches were made to look routine.  I have seen a lot of great centerfielders since Willie, but Byron is the only one I would put in his class.  He is just an incredible talent and truly a generational player.  More importantly, he is a great human being.  We all pray that he has good health this summer.  If he does, Katy bar the door.

Also recall seeing Mays play, although there wasn't a lot of tv to see back then.  Agree 100% with everything you said and am so happy that the Twins got it done this winter and Byron is staying home.

I am so happy Buck signed with the Twins.  I felt the same way about Joe Mauer.  They both are outstanding examples for young people to emulate, and for us old guys too.