Buxton needs to get off to a decent start, imo

[ewen21]

He's had two absolutely dreadful Aprils in a row.  It amounts 17 for 113 (a .150 batting average) with 54 strikeouts.

I understand patterns are not easy to fathom and my observation begs for a the old "small sample size" retort, but I don't think the poor performance can be explained away as one would a random number drawing.  I think Buxton was very VERY tight the last two Aprils and THAT is the reason for his poor play.  I can excuse it the first two years.  In 2016, it was his first opening day and he was given the starting job out of the gate.  I can understand and appreciate the kid felt pressure.  Then last season, Molitor decided to hit him 3rd and Mauer 4th (which was insane) and that more than likely put added pressure on the kid.

 

I should also note that Buxton has terrible numbers against the Yankees.  This is another situation where I noticed him being extremely tense.  Against them he is 1 for 25 with 16 strikeouts (including the postseason wildcard playoff game last year 1 for 27 with 17 Ks).  If I were allowed only one criticism of the guy I would say he needs to get the mental part of the game down, most notably in situations where he is nervous.  He admitted to being nervous at the beginning of last season and this is something that really needs to melt away.  A lot was made about settling him down when he first came up.  I get it because all people have to face tense situations in work.  It is always harder for a neophyte to settle in (although some seem to have no problem).  Somehow Buxton needs to rise above jitters and deliver.  For me, what he does this April and against the Yankees is an important obstacle for him to clear.

 

If he is to be the superstar everyone hopes he cannot come out of the gate looking like the worst hitter in baseball.  He was that last season.  He doesn't need to jump out of the gate hitting .400.  I would settle for him hitting .215 and striking out 30% of the time as that would be a whole lot better than the last two Aprils.  We also have games in NY during the first month.  I really would like to see him not look terrified hitting in Yankee Stadium.  I took last week's ST game vs the Yankees as a foreboding sign.  He looked terrible in that game.

 

I do not think it is unreasonable to notice this pattern in him.  I was wondering if anyone else notice that he had trouble with putting pressure on himself.  As hitter he seems to be his own worst enemy sometimes

[yarnivek1972]

It probably didn’t help last year that he inexplicably hit in the 3 spot to start the season. There was all kinds of talk that he was not ready for that before the fact. That he struggled with it was extremely forseeable.

[h2oface]

Totally agree. Time to be consistent, and ready out of the gate.

 

The guy I am really worried about is Rodney. If ST is any indication, I am concerned about how many games he will blow before he is inevitably released. I fear it will be too many.

[gunnarthor]

Don't worry about ST stats. The Twins have a good offense. Buxton is a stud. He'll be an all-star.

[Doomtints]

Buxton figured things out last year. There should be no concern about him starting slow.

[yarnivek1972]

There’s always a concern. Baseball is a game of adjustment. Pitchers adjusted to what Buxton did in late 2016. It took him a quarter of 2017 to adjust to what they did differently. One can assume teams will try new things with him in 2018. That goes for everyone, of course. Not just Buxton. It does seem though that the organization is putting the tools in place to help coaches and players see what the opponents are doing to battle the Twins. That should help everyone.

[Puckett34]

While his notorious slow starts are discouraging, I'll take his defense along with his better than league average batting average from May on.    He hits .258 in months that aren't April.  League average for 2016 and 2017 were both .255. 

 

 

If 13 more hits fall in, the past two April's, it bumps that average up to .265 in April '16 and '17.

 

 

Having said that, it would be nice to see if he gets off to a nice start.

[Doubles]

 

Buxton figured things out last year. There should be no concern about him starting slow.

I think a slow start is a concern for all major leaguers.    Hitting is pretty difficult.

 

I applaud Buxton's mental toughness.  To have the lengthy horrible stretches he has had at the plate, and to not let it affect his defense shows great qualities.  

 

I also second the poster that questioned having Buck bat third in the order, especially for as long as he did even after his struggles became obvious.  But, man, we all saw how a hitting Buxton changes the Twins lineup significantly.  Serious game-changer.

[birddog]

He has been a slow starter at every level so far, so we can't expect him to hit .300 in April. But he rebounds so well that we just have to be patient if he does start off slowly again in '18. I hope he bats down in the order initially to lessen any pressure he puts on himself, but when he gets hot we should see him move up as high as the #3 when he earns it. He will become one of the most consistently exciting players in the game--defensively and offensively.

[Craig Arko]

It would be good if 5-6 guys get off to really good starts.

[Platoon]

It probably didn’t help last year that he inexplicably hit in the 3 spot to start the season. There was all kinds of talk that he was not ready for that before the fact. That he struggled with it was extremely forseeable.

It's often assumed that MLB mangers make decisions that are intricately determined by deep analytical considerations, not known to even the most ardent fan. Therefore it is too far above our understanding for us to criticize! I doubt hitting Buxton 3 to start the season was one of those. You could likely count the people who thought that a good idea on one finger.

[Loosey]

He wasn't a good Major League hitter the prior two Aprils.  I think he learned to hit at the Major League level last year and I expect the 2nd half to carry over.  If he hits .250 in April, that is a success in my opinion and is around league average.  

[Vanimal46]

I'm not concerned with Buxton. He kept switching back and forth from leg kick to no leg kick. Now that he knows what works, he should be ready for takeoff.

[Puckett34]

 

It would be good if 5-6 guys get off to really good starts.

Lets make it an even (odd?) 25.

[laloesch]

 

It probably didn’t help last year that he inexplicably hit in the 3 spot to start the season. There was all kinds of talk that he was not ready for that before the fact. That he struggled with it was extremely forseeable.

 

I tend to see the problem less about where in the order he was hitting and more about his eye at the plate.  I mean he was a free swinger early on and seemed to have difficulty reading pitches and ended up whiffing at virtually every breaking ball thrown to him, some of which were so far out of the zone that they bounced off home plate.

[Number3]

Not just Buxton. Have you checked the spring stats? I hope there is a switch that can be flipped in 4 more days. Can't wait. At least Os network is on in my market.

Glad to see you and Ewen (formerly Diehard3). Go Twins!

[Platoon]

I think Buxton will have a breakout year. Baring injury he will be a Baseball Tonight fixture!

[The_Phantom]

I expect him to be better this year.

 

Baseball players seem to always go through peaks and valleys, slumps and hotstreaks. If he can keep his cold streaks in April, that makes me happier than in September and October when every game is crucial. 

 

But even a decent start is better than what he has been doing. He hasn't just been rough in April, he's been downright awful. He will (hopefully) always bring a lot of defensive value to the team, but the Twins will definitely need his bat to contribute too, mostly so the Indians have less of a chance of running away with the division like they did last year.

[jkcarew]

I would have liked to seen continued progress with the strike zone this spring.  Really didn't see that.  Swings at anything close like Rosario, but will never have Rosario's hands.  With Rosario, a different approach would be advisable; with Buxton, a different approach is absolutely necessary.

 

It's going to continue to be uneven for Buck until he figures out how to get pitchers to throw the ball over the plate.  Kinda, one step back, two steps forward path I suspect.  I'll settle for a 'normal' bad start...just avoid the historically awful that he's had in the past.

[raindog]

 

Totally agree. Time to be consistent, and ready out of the gate.

The guy I am really worried about is Rodney. If ST is any indication, I am concerned about how many games he will blow before he is inevitably released. I fear it will be too many.

He's had bad spring trainings before, it's meaningless. His best year was 2014 when he had a 2.85 ERA in 66 innings pitched. Coincidentally, he had his worst spring training ever that year, with a 9 ERA. 

[ewen21]

The speed and defense will be there.  That part of the game is based purely off his athleticism.  I get concerned with his approach at the plate.  YES, some have pointed out that he improved greatly during the second half.  He also played very well over the last 25 games in 2016.  What I am looking for is carryover from gains last year into this April.  

 

The last thing he needs is 2 for 25 with 12 Ks in the first week.  I suppose this can be said for any player, but Buxton has two years of this under his belt.  Looks like the weather will be in the 60s in Baltimore to open.  He is going into a hitter's park as well.  Hopefully this gets him settled to where he isn't spending extra time in the cage trying to figure stuff out right off the bat.

[jimmer]

Buxton will be fine.  He has all the tools and a good head on his shoulders.  And even if he starts slow, his defense will still provide plenty of value.

 

There are very few people on this team who concern me less than Buxton.

 

 

[MaxOelerking]

Buxton will be fine, he's only 24 so still a few year out from the prime of his career. If he is going to have a slump, I'd rather it come early in April than in September/October. With the adjustments he made last season and all off season to perfect his craft, I don't think we should have much to worry about. My biggest concern with Buxton is that he's going to hurt himself crashing into the center field wall so many times. I love watching him fly around out there and totally appreciate the hustle, I just hope he can stay healthy and play 150+ games with 625+ plate appearances.

[Old Twins Cap]

The only thing I check in Twins' boxscores is Buxton. 

 

The only thing.

 

If he develops into a stud, the Twins will have many good years ahead. I'm old enough that this matters to what might be my prime baseball years.

 

If he struggles and doubts himself, the Twins ... will be ... who knows?

 

What is concerning , as I watched this spring, he swung and missed a lot of pitches in zone.

 

I'm okay if he chases, because that can be corrected. He has a good eye.

 

But, missing balls in the zone? Or grounding them to short. Got to minimize that.

 

He needs to drive the hittable pitches. Period.

[Doomtints]

 

I think a slow start is a concern for all major leaguers.    Hitting is pretty difficult.

 

I applaud Buxton's mental toughness.  To have the lengthy horrible stretches he has had at the plate, and to not let it affect his defense shows great qualities.  

 

I also second the poster that questioned having Buck bat third in the order, especially for as long as he did even after his struggles became obvious.  But, man, we all saw how a hitting Buxton changes the Twins lineup significantly.  Serious game-changer.

 

I wouldn't put him anywhere near the top of the lineup until he hits his groove, yes. He's still young. As long as the Twins don't make this mistake again, he should be fine.

[diehardtwinsfan]

 

He has been a slow starter at every level so far, so we can't expect him to hit .300 in April. But he rebounds so well that we just have to be patient if he does start off slowly again in '18. I hope he bats down in the order initially to lessen any pressure he puts on himself, but when he gets hot we should see him move up as high as the #3 when he earns it. He will become one of the most consistently exciting players in the game--defensively and offensively.

This isn't quite true. He destroyed CR and FTM in his first full year. He had his concussion his second full season. That's when the slow starts started. He was rather aggressively pushed after that due to need. I think there's a bit more context to his slow starts, though he doesn't really have an excuse this year.

[diehardtwinsfan]

 

Not just Buxton. Have you checked the spring stats? I hope there is a switch that can be flipped in 4 more days. Can't wait. At least Os network is on in my market.

Glad to see you and Ewen (formerly Diehard3). Go Twins!

 

Last spring, he tore the cover off the ball in ST and got off to a horrific start. The spring before, he was awful and got off to a horrific start. Last spring, Sano didn't look like he could catch up to a minor league pitcher, and he got off to a good start.

 

My point, is that I'm not concerned about the numbers. Hopefully, he has a good process and knows what he's working on. If he doesn't... well, then we should be concerned.

[bean5302]

Spring Training is meaningless. Pitchers aren't throwing their best pitches. They don't even start Spring Training off throwing their best velocities. A lot of Spring Training is just... well... training. Shaking off the rust and working on things you want to improve at the cost of "stats" for those players who aren't trying to make a special impression.

 

Buxton has proven his ability to hit and he did it across the last half of 2017. I doubt he has major confidence issues to work through and I don't see how a fast start is at all necessary now that he's shown his breakout with the bat.

 

Buxton isn't going anywhere. Unless he struggles at an epic level (think OPS under .600) there is no chance he sees the minors until at least after June.

[Doubles]

 

Buxton has proven his ability to hit and he did it across the last half of 2017. I doubt he has major confidence issues to work through and I don't see how a fast start is at all necessary now that he's shown his breakout with the bat.

 

Buxton isn't going anywhere. Unless he struggles at an epic level (think OPS under .600) there is no chance he sees the minors until at least after June.

I'm not certain people fully appreciate how hard hitting a baseball is.  I also believe most fans have no idea how much time & effort goes into honing a Major League swing.  It's not as simple as 'figuring it out'.  It's a constant process of evolution and adjustments.  Remember, hitters are facing guys that are constantly working on their craft, too.  To me, that confrontation between pitcher & hitter- each of whom are constantly trying to better themselves- is what makes baseball captivating to me.

 

Didn't mean to pick on your post, Bean-  and I fully agree that a 'fast start' isn't necessary for Buck to have a great season.  But in addition to the physical side, hitting is as much a mental game as anything else.  Digging in to a batter's box with a .125 batting average staring at you from the JumboTron in mid-May is enough to wear anyone out mentally.  The game's hard enough when just playing an opponent.  It's exponentially more difficult when you are also playing yourself.

 

Doesn't always appear that way, but baseball's a difficult game to play.  Accordingly, there's two kinds of players.  Those who have been humbled by the game, and those about to be.

 

 

[spanman2]

We all want him to not have a repeat of recent April's.  One thing he has going for him now is he has experienced those prolonged slumps.  If/when they do occur during the season he should now be equipped between the ears to deal with them.  Get on base and let that speed lead the way.  Win Twins!