Buxton meets with Rocco

[stringer bell]

8 minutes ago, Greglw3 said:

Lewis hurt his hammy trying to beat out a base hit. It was very clear. He aggravated it during the AB.

That is not the company line. Lewis claimed it was a nagging foot injury that made him come up lame running out the DP grounder. It may or may not be the whole story, but this is what has been reported.

[BiggestRoccoFan]

17 hours ago, chpettit19 said:

Wouldn't it being hard to score runs be a reason to start the guy who gives you a significantly better chance to score runs?

Nope.

We have enough other guys to pick up the slack.

I want teams running games contained.

[chpettit19]

5 hours ago, BiggestRoccoFan said:

Nope.

We have enough other guys to pick up the slack.

I want teams running games contained.

Well they have the exact same pop times so you're sacrificing offense in an offensively suppressed situation to gain no quicker throws. Bold strategy, but to each their own.

[dxpavelka]

Sorry but if Luplow makes sense I probably won't even turn my TV on.

 

[lecroy24fan]

On 9/30/2023 at 8:19 AM, Jham said:

Is Buxton not allowed in the dugout without a roster spot? 

 

Teams are allowed to carry a handful of not roster players and they can be in uniform in the dugout. It's like a taxi squad. 

[GusGus11]

I skimmed through the thread but find it absolutely wild some people think Buxton might take Julien ABs against righties lol

There is a better chance I get named President of the United States tomorrow.

If Buck makes roster its to play vs lefties. Unless he can play CF vs righties.

[ewen21]

On 9/30/2023 at 10:33 AM, Linus said:

I think people are getting ahead of themselves worrying about Buxton. If he makes the roster it will be as a DH against lefties and / or a pinch hitter. And if Lewis can’t play in the field then he is the dh and Buck sits the first round. 
 

I just gotta say the negativity towards Buck is a little much. The guy is injury prone not an axe murderer. By all accounts he puts himself through a lot just to try and take the field and people are acting like he’s sitting on the beach somewhere. 

I am not saying he is an ex murderer. Even last year when the goal was to get him in 100 games. I am saying after many years of him being injured and through each scenario it is has been tough to tell what exactly it was that kept him off the field.  We have been told what a supreme athlete he is and he's played in over 92 games one time.  Enough with the excuses and the "we gotta keep him healthy" stuff.  That is HIS responsibility.   Availability is the best ability.

[Linus]

39 minutes ago, ewen21 said:

I am not saying he is an ex murderer. Even last year when the goal was to get him in 100 games. I am saying after many years of him being injured and through each scenario it is has been tough to tell what exactly it was that kept him off the field.  We have been told what a supreme athlete he is and he's played in over 92 games one time.  Enough with the excuses and the "we gotta keep him healthy" stuff.  That is HIS responsibility.   Availability is the best ability.  

 

 

 

Have you ever considered the guy is doing everything he can to get on the field but his knee is shot?  You and others insinuate that he is some sort of slacker because he isn’t on the field which isn’t the case. I get it - he gets injured a frustrating amount but to assign a moral failing to this is not right. 

[MisstheBomba]

Stick with the guys who got us here…..And what good is a Great player if he rarely plays? We have a good core group of Young guys who are not intimidated by the past playoff losses probably……I’d start Kenta in a game 3 btw if needed.

[laloesch]

22 hours ago, Linus said:

Have you ever considered the guy is doing everything he can to get on the field but his knee is shot?  You and others insinuate that he is some sort of slacker because he isn’t on the field which isn’t the case. I get it - he gets injured a frustrating amount but to assign a moral failing to this is not right. 

But he really isn't insinuating "he's a slacker."  I get it that emotions run high with certain players amongst the fans, but if the guy has a long track record of not being healthy and not playing, it's kinda a "be all end all" situation.  You have to at some point start looking at and questioning other factors such as WHY.  I remember the same discussions taking place about Sano and then others criticizing them for questioning the reasons. Look at how that situation turned out. 

You do HAVE to admit he has a valid point in this regard.  And for the record Buck's track record is NOT GOOD most of his career.  We also don't really know if "his knee is shot."

2015 (46 G, 83-79): Buxton made his much-anticipated debut in June, but he missed nearly two months with a sprained left thumb that cost him a large chunk of his rookie season.

2016 (92 G, 59-103): Minnesota was heading to one of the team's worst seasons in franchise history. Buxton played in half the season, but he missed time in May and August dealing with a knee contusion and back spasms.

2017 (140 G, 85-77): Buxton's best overall season still saw him miss time with a groin strain and migraines. He still finished in the top-20 for AL MVP and won the Platinum Glove as the league's best defender. 

2018 (28 G, 78-84): Unfortunately, migraines followed Buxton into the next season, including time missed with a strained wrist and a fractured toe. His toe injury had to be frustrating as he injured himself by fouling a ball off his foot as part of a rehab start in the minors. 

2019 (87 G, 101-61): Concussion-like symptoms and a bruised right wrist impacted the early part of the season before a season-ending collision with the wall resulted in shoulder surgery. Minnesota won over 100 games, but a healthy Buxton might have been able to make a difference in the playoffs.   

2020 (39 G, 36-24): Buxton was carted off the field with a left foot sprain during the team's ramp-up to the season. Luckily, this only cost him a couple of games at the season's start. At the end of 2020, Buxton was hit by a pitch in the helmet which caused the recurrence of concussion-like symptoms. 

2021 (61 G, 73-89): Buxton was off to a torrid start to the year before hamstring issues, and hip strain put him on the IL. Only three days after returning from the hip strain, Buxton fractured his hand when he was hit by a pitch.

 

I would add that if anything this list indicates he plays extremely hard (but so do other centerfielders) and none of them have anything close to the list Buxton has.  It could mean a lot of things: bad luck, durability issues, perhaps some conditioning issues, I don't know.    

[Woof Bronzer]

23 hours ago, Linus said:

Have you ever considered the guy is doing everything he can to get on the field but his knee is shot?  

Yes.  This is why he should not be on the roster.  Has nothing to do with "moral failure" and everything to do with "too injured to play."

[Battle ur tail off]

On 9/29/2023 at 3:35 PM, RickOShea said:

Corner outfield isn't a solution.  It may decrease the amount of territory, but he still has to contend with the fence, playing surface, and overcoming the differences of playing and covering angles.

I'm not advocating for him as a starter there. MAT gets center all playoffs, no questions asked. I am saying Buxton as a defensive replacement late for someone like Wallner, etc is a huge win for our defense. MAT, Buxton, Kep, that is a nice looking defensive outfield.

[clone52]

On 9/29/2023 at 3:41 PM, chpettit19 said:

FYI, Bassitt is a righty.

I meant Kikuchi was a lefty.

And I was thinking Gaussman would pitch this weekend

[clone52]

On 9/29/2023 at 9:26 PM, BiggestRoccoFan said:

I know everyone is in love with Jeffers but this is playoff baseball people and runs are very difficult to come by. I am starting Vasquez because he is a superior defender compared to Jeffers. 

I thought Jeffers had closed the gap defensively, but he is well behind in most if not all defensive metrics, so that is a really good point.

Matchups with the pitchers might come into play.  For whatever reason, Lopez has been far better with Jeffers behind the plate than with Vasquez.  Hitters have a .604 OPS with Jeffers and a .736 OPS with Vasquez.

Gray is pretty similar.

Jeffers has never faced Gausman, but is 0-5 with 4 K's against Berrios.  Vasquez is hitting .192 with 12 K's in 25 ABs against Gausman.  He's 2/8 with 1 K against Berrios.

Based on that, I bet they go Jeffers today and Vasquez tomorrow.

[Squirrel]

21 hours ago, laloesch said:

But he really isn't insinuating "he's a slacker."  I get it that emotions run high with certain players amongst the fans, but if the guy has a long track record of not being healthy and not playing, it's kinda a "be all end all" situation.  You have to at some point start looking at and questioning other factors such as WHY.  I remember the same discussions taking place about Sano and then others criticizing them for questioning the reasons. Look at how that situation turned out. 

You do HAVE to admit he has a valid point in this regard.  And for the record Buck's track record is NOT GOOD most of his career.  We also don't really know if "his knee is shot."

2015 (46 G, 83-79): Buxton made his much-anticipated debut in June, but he missed nearly two months with a sprained left thumb that cost him a large chunk of his rookie season.

2016 (92 G, 59-103): Minnesota was heading to one of the team's worst seasons in franchise history. Buxton played in half the season, but he missed time in May and August dealing with a knee contusion and back spasms.

2017 (140 G, 85-77): Buxton's best overall season still saw him miss time with a groin strain and migraines. He still finished in the top-20 for AL MVP and won the Platinum Glove as the league's best defender. 

2018 (28 G, 78-84): Unfortunately, migraines followed Buxton into the next season, including time missed with a strained wrist and a fractured toe. His toe injury had to be frustrating as he injured himself by fouling a ball off his foot as part of a rehab start in the minors. 

2019 (87 G, 101-61): Concussion-like symptoms and a bruised right wrist impacted the early part of the season before a season-ending collision with the wall resulted in shoulder surgery. Minnesota won over 100 games, but a healthy Buxton might have been able to make a difference in the playoffs.   

2020 (39 G, 36-24): Buxton was carted off the field with a left foot sprain during the team's ramp-up to the season. Luckily, this only cost him a couple of games at the season's start. At the end of 2020, Buxton was hit by a pitch in the helmet which caused the recurrence of concussion-like symptoms. 

2021 (61 G, 73-89): Buxton was off to a torrid start to the year before hamstring issues, and hip strain put him on the IL. Only three days after returning from the hip strain, Buxton fractured his hand when he was hit by a pitch.

 

I would add that if anything this list indicates he plays extremely hard (but so do other centerfielders) and none of them have anything close to the list Buxton has.  It could mean a lot of things: bad luck, durability issues, perhaps some conditioning issues, I don't know.    

I think most people are acknowledging Buxton’s injury history. Most would like a miraculous return but know it’s not happening and Buxton shouldn’t have a roster spot. But the poster was insinuating something nefarious with Buxton’s character if you read back a few posts on the exchange. Buxton has loads of talent but a body that won’t allow it. It’s sad and unfortunate. It’s no one’s fault, as was implied, it’s just how he’s made

[sthpstm]

Give me Luplow and Stevenson who each meet a specific team need.  Sorry Buck