Byron Buxton

[Dantes929]

 

I'll take one tool at a time with Buxton - the field throw run are already top notch.

 

Get the hit tool going, and the power will come with time.

I agree with all this except I haven't really witnessed the throwing part.   I get to watch about half of the total Twins action and I haven't seen him throw out too many guys and when it looks like he has a pretty good chance to do so the throws are really not that accurate.   Am I just watching the wrong half of the action?

[Ncgo4]

The two biggest advances on the Twin's offense is Buxton's and Rosario's improved recognition of the strike zone. It has meant two marginal O players becoming stars.

[stringer bell]

 

I agree with all this except I haven't really witnessed the throwing part.   I get to watch about half of the total Twins action and I haven't seen him throw out too many guys and when it looks like he has a pretty good chance to do so the throws are really not that accurate.   Am I just watching the wrong half of the action?

I'd say that Buxton has some work to do on throwing. He has rushed a few throws and then is not mechanically proper. He has plenty of arm strength from what I've seen and when not hurrying too much the throws are accurate.

[Vanimal46]

Buxton broke the stat cast record last night with the fastest inside the park HR! He ran home to home in 13.85 seconds, sprint speed of 30.9 feet per second....

 

If this baseball thing doesn't work out, I think he could have a future at the summer olympics.... Holy moly.

[AlwaysinModeration]

Buxton broke the stat cast record last night with the fastest inside the park HR! He ran home to home in 13.85 seconds, sprint speed of 30.9 feet per second....

 

If this baseball thing doesn't work out, I think he could have a future at the summer olympics.... Holy moly.

Works out to just over 21mph. For reference, with no comment, Usain Bolt maxed out at 27mph.

[CampQ]

Works out to just over 21mph. For reference, with no comment, Usain Bolt maxed out at 27mph.

Bolt didn't have to make a sharp left turn every ninety feet

[kydoty]

 

Works out to just over 21mph. For reference, with no comment, Usain Bolt maxed out at 27mph.

 

 

Below is Jim Thome's triple back in 2010.  I clocked it at 13.43 seconds.  It took Thome almost the same amount of time to go 270 feet as it took Buxton to go 360 feet. 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qf3sI7__O78

[kydoty]

But seriously, I as well would love to see how fast Buxton could do a 40 time or a 100 meter sprint.

[jimbo92107]

 

I agree with all this except I haven't really witnessed the throwing part.   I get to watch about half of the total Twins action and I haven't seen him throw out too many guys and when it looks like he has a pretty good chance to do so the throws are really not that accurate.   Am I just watching the wrong half of the action?

Same here. Of the three outfielders, Rosario has the most dangerous arm, then Kepler. Buxton doesn't seem to have a serious gun, though it could be we just haven't seen enough chances. Keep in mind, these three guys are ending a lot of innings by simply catching everything, and the ones they don't catch are driven into the gaps, which means they can't get much on a throw.

[adorduan]

 

But seriously, I as well would love to see how fast Buxton could do a 40 time or a 100 meter sprint.

I think this has been discussed before.  Buxton is fast, but not world class sprinter fast.

[DaveW]

Since the All-Star Game, Buxton's slash line is .351/.406/.596/1.003.

Wow. Those numbers are Legit.

 

The walks will start coming more as well as teams eventually start to pitch more cautiously to him.

[yarnivek1972]

I think this has been discussed before. Buxton is fast, but not world class sprinter fast.

I think a lot of his speed comes from the long legs. He has a quick first step, but when he gets going into high gear, he is fast. What was it, 13 something seconds on his inside the park HR? That's more than 100 meters. And sprinters don't have to make 3 sharp lefts when they run.

[Blake]

 

That's what happens when he's the best defensive CF in the game, and elite on the basepath. He's been on a nice hot streak over the last month. Hopefully he finds a middle ground between .317 (what he's hitting since Aug 1) and .200. He's still only 23, so there's plenty of time to grow. 

Why settle for middle ground? Why not a batting title to go with his elite speed and gold glove?

 

Seriously, though, I think we're only seeing flashes of the player Buxton is going to become.  

[Blake]

 

Wow. Those numbers are Legit.

The walks will start coming more as well as teams eventually start to pitch more cautiously to him.

Is it really a good idea to walk a player that is the base stealing threat Buxton is? Serious question. From what I've seen, putting someone with Buxton's speed on the basepaths isn't necessarily a good strategy.

[Ncgo4]

Buxton has a gun of an arm. He supposedly hot high 90's when pitching in high school. Only issue appears to be that he rushes his throws back into the infield. Arm strength, however, is a major plus.

[Blackjack]

I'm not ready to anoint Buxton for the HOF yet.  Lets see if he can stay healthy and on the field. With his style of play, my prediction is that he'll be spending a lot time on the DL.  I hope I'm wrong.

[Guest]

Below is Jim Thome's triple back in 2010.  I clocked it at 13.43 seconds.  It took Thome almost the same amount of time to go 270 feet as it took Buxton to go 360 feet. 

 

That shows you how awesome Jim Thome was, as a guy of that size and talent to be able to run a triple a little faster than Buxton can run an IPHR.

[Loosey]

This season has been amazing in watching him develop.  

 

1st half of April he completely struggled.  Striking out at historic clips and going 4-48

2nd half of April through May he tinkered with his swing and showed some progress

The month of June he developed some consistency getting hits here and there, lot of grounders 

July he started to hit the ball hard for base hits, looking like a solid hitter

August the trend has continued but now he is driving ball into the gaps for extra base hits and home runs

 

The whole season has been baby steps but huge improvements.  If this last month has been a glimpse of what he will become I am beginning to get 2014 level of excited!

[laloesch]

I have been a big skeptic of his bat since last season, but post all-star he has me starting to believe.  If he can largely eliminate the slumps and get on base more often we might have a dangerous lead-off hitter in the making here. 

[ShouldaCouldaWoulda]

 

I think this has been discussed before.  Buxton is fast, but not world class sprinter fast.

I think Buxton has more of the sprint speed type that is better at the 200-400 than it is suited for the 40-100 sprint. Those short sprints are better for 'quick' guys. First steps are huge in that and getting to top end speed as soon as possible. I think he is improving his first step while stealing and in the OF. 

[Darius]

Check out Aaron Gleeman's twitter to see a Thrylos tweet immortalized. Pretty hilarious.

[Darius]

Buxton has a gun of an arm. He supposedly hot high 90's when pitching in high school. Only issue appears to be that he rushes his throws back into the infield. Arm strength, however, is a major plus.

Yep, I don't think those claiming he has a weak arm know which way is up or down. Throws from center are much different than throws from left or right. Fences are long, angles and bounces off walls are different, etc. How often do you see guys gunned down at home from center? Almost never.

 

An outfield assist is very rare for a player and should by no means be a stat used to judge arm strength.

 

Another note: Rosario has a strong arm, sure. But how many balls have we seen airmail over a cutoff costing extra bases and additional runs? Buxton just isn't as reckless.

 

Last note: Even if he did have a poor throwing arm (which he doesn't) he's still the best outfielder in the world.

[drjim]

https://twitter.com/keithlaw/status/900036752815030275

[gunnarthor]

Klaw has always been a big Buxton guy. 

[jimmer]

There is a nice article posted yesterday about Buxton over at Fangraphs.

[Doubles]

Buxton has been tasked with trying to figure out how to hit against the absolute best pitchers on the face of the planet at the absolute highest level of the occupation. I tip my hat to him for having the mental toughness to stick with it, and especially for not letting his offensive struggles get in the way of playing the best centerfield I've ever had the privilege to witness.

 

I guess I'm not always convinced that most people realize how hard hitting is, and how incredibly good and talented major league pitchers are.

[gunnarthor]

 

There is a nice article posted yesterday about Buxton over at Fangraphs.

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/byron-buxton-is-playing-excellent-baseball/

[USAFChief]

Last 365 days:  485 PAs, .251/.317/.435 

That's a .753 OPS (18 points higher than Joe Mauer over the same time frame), and trending up. 

Progress.

[jimmer]

I like it when people can still figure out a way to stretch discussions so far out so they can still manage to take a shot at Mauer's performance.  Takes dedication.

[Mr. Brooks]

It seemed to me that Chief was using Joe as a reference point, not taking a shot at him, but that's just how I read it, don't want to speak for him.