The Twins Made a Mistake Waiting on Byron Buxton’s Hip Surgery

[HarmonK03]

4 hours ago, Wedman13 said:

And anyone cannot tell me if his salary wasn't doubled (which at the deadline it would have been)  he wouldn't accept the no trade thing

You must be part of Buxton's inner circle to make this claim.  I am sure he and his family looked at all his options with input from his agent and he stated he wanted to be here.  That is all we can go on, are his words, no one can speak for him.

[HarmonK03]

3 hours ago, LyleCole said:

The Twins made a huge mistake in not trading Buxton in the offseason.  He was coming off one of his best seasons of his career and the 2nd most games played in a season.  He still was a valuable 5 tool player and for a contending team on a very favorable contract that at the start of 2026 had three full years of team control.

The entire no-trade saga could have been easily overridden by trading him to a contending team that really wanted him.

And how was this going to happen?

[old nurse]

8 hours ago, djvang said:

Unfortunately he's just cursed with a body that constantly breaks down under routine baseball wear-and tear. 

What are his stats when he's on the IL, where's he's been as often as on the field?

The Dodgers collect oft injured players and manage to win 

[1985Fan]

What’s the worry here? If Buxton isn’t ready at the start of the season, you’ve got Jenkins or Rodriguez to play CF until he’s proven ready to go. Twins weren’t supposed to be contenders next year anyway, right? Next year is waiting for Houston and Lackey to be promoted and have the dream team getting ready for championship in 2028 and beyond. Fans get to see all the prized prospects play everyday. When Buck comes back, they can assess what the plan is for him that is best for the team and the player. 

[mnfireman]

16 hours ago, PuckettPond said:

Buxton will also need a hip replacement. He will never be the same as it is doubtful he plays in 2027. He is doing more harm than good to the Twins. Please retire for the sake of everyone as he will only embarrass himself.

 

[LyleCole]

16 hours ago, HarmonK03 said:

And how was this going to happen?

You make a trade with a contending team and Buxton would have agreed to it.  100% guaranteed.  Like I explained, it is one thing to state "I want to be a Twin forever". It is another to really be confronted with reality of playing for a team that is going to contend for the World Series and will make you a true star player, rather than an unknown toiling for a team  in the minor league of major league baseball.  I get why Buxton would say he does not want to be traded, but in the end he would have moved.  Competitiveness, financial opportunities, and career opportunities.  Only a fool would stay with the Minnesota Twins when they have the opportunity to move to the Dodgers, Braves, Yankees, Cubs, Red Sox, or Phillies.

At the beginning of 2026 Buxton could have brought a haul of players to the Twins, including at least one top level pitching prospect.  Given the state of our pitching pipeline that would have been a major benefit to rebuild this team into a real contender.  Joe Ryan could have returned the same value.  

 

[HarmonK03]

6 minutes ago, LyleCole said:

You make a trade with a contending team and Buxton would have agreed to it.  100% guaranteed.  Like I explained, it is one thing to state "I want to be a Twin forever". It is another to really be confronted with reality of playing for a team that is going to contend for the World Series and will make you a true star player, rather than an unknown toiling for a team  in the minor league of major league baseball.  I get why Buxton would say he does not want to be traded, but in the end he would have moved.  Competitiveness, financial opportunities, and career opportunities.  Only a fool would stay with the Minnesota Twins when they have the opportunity to move to the Dodgers, Braves, Yankees, Cubs, Red Sox, or Phillies.

At the beginning of 2026 Buxton could have brought a haul of players to the Twins, including at least one top level pitching prospect.  Given the state of our pitching pipeline that would have been a major benefit to rebuild this team into a real contender.  Joe Ryan could have returned the same value.  

 

I do not understand how you can 100% guarantee this, there is only one person who knows this and that is Buxton.  I don't believe he is dumb or naive and hasn't thought through everything you are saying and yet he has chosen to stay here and has made that public information.  He is here through 2028 so we might as well get used to that.

If anything changes I don't believe it will be public until an actual transaction occurs.

[LyleCole]

6 hours ago, HarmonK03 said:

I do not understand how you can 100% guarantee this, there is only one person who knows this and that is Buxton.  I don't believe he is dumb or naive and hasn't thought through everything you are saying and yet he has chosen to stay here and has made that public information.  He is here through 2028 so we might as well get used to that.

If anything changes I don't believe it will be public until an actual transaction occurs.

The percentage of players rejecting upward trades is about 0% in the entire history of the league.

Now, if we were trading him to a non-contender I would think otherwise.

The fact is that the best thing for Byron Buxton's career would be traded from a low level team like the Twins to a power team.  

[Wedman13]

3 minutes ago, LyleCole said:

The percentage of players rejecting upward trades is about 0% in the entire history of the league.

Now, if we were trading him to a non-contender I would think otherwise.

The fact is that the best thing for Byron Buxton's career would be traded from a low level team like the Twins to a power team.  

💯

[HarmonK03]

3 hours ago, LyleCole said:

The percentage of players rejecting upward trades is about 0% in the entire history of the league.

Now, if we were trading him to a non-contender I would think otherwise.

The fact is that the best thing for Byron Buxton's career would be traded from a low level team like the Twins to a power team.  

It sounds like deGrom disproved this theory when he turned down a trade to Atlanta this year which would have been an upward trade.  And I would guess that there have been others, it just was never reported.

To me it doesn't seem like a good idea to speak for others, even it is something you would do, it doesn't mean others would do the same.