The Twins' Greatest Players: What-Ifs & Prodigies

[Cody Christie]

Image courtesy of © Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports (Morneau), © Jason Bridge-Imagn Images (Liriano)

The Sporting News has been examining the 140 greatest baseball players of all time through an unconventional lens. Rather than ranking every player on a single list, the publication has divided its selections into 14 positionless rooms, each “representing and articulating a varying archetypes of greatness.” I'm striving to miniaturize that project here at Twins Daily. To learn more about it, check out the first installment of the series. 

The latest installment examines two careers that leave fans wondering what might have been and two players who burst onto the major league scene with the kind of talent that inspires tremendous expectations.

What-Ifs

The Sporting News describes its What-ifs room as a collection of players whose legacies were shaped by circumstances beyond their control. These careers leave fans wondering how much more a player could have accomplished if injuries had not intervened, opportunities had been different or a few critical moments had gone another way. The category is not about failure. It is about recognizing greatness while acknowledging the factors that prevented it from reaching its full potential.

For the Twins, Byron Buxton and Justin Morneau provide two compelling examples. Both demonstrated the ability to become among the best players in baseball, but injuries interrupted what could have been even more remarkable careers.

Byron Buxton

Few players have combined the physical tools and on-field production of Buxton. The center fielder possesses elite speed, outstanding defensive instincts and the ability to change a game with one swing. When healthy, he has shown why the Twins made him the second overall pick in the 2012 MLB Draft.

Buxton's defensive peak came in 2017, when he won both a Gold Glove and a Platinum Glove. His speed and range allowed him to cover enormous amounts of ground in center field, while his developing power gave Minnesota another dimension offensively. Although injuries limited him to 140 games that season, it remains an example of what he could accomplish with regular playing time.

His offensive development has made the possibilities even more intriguing. In 2021, Buxton hit .306/.358/.647 with 19 home runs in just 61 games. The following season, he launched 28 home runs in 92 games. Those stretches demonstrated that he could be one of the most dangerous offensive players in baseball even when he wasn't available for a full season.

The same pattern has continued in recent years. Buxton played 126 games in 2025, providing a glimpse of what a more extended season could look like. In 2026, he produced 25 home runs and an .829 OPS in 93 games before recurring right hip problems sent him to the injured list.

That is what makes Buxton such a natural fit for the What-ifs room. His career is not defined by a lack of talent or an inability to produce. He has accumulated All-Star selections, Gold Glove recognition and nearly 200 career home runs. The question has always been how much more he could accomplish if his body allowed him to play consistently.

Imagine Buxton playing 145 to 155 games in multiple seasons. What would his home run totals look like? How many additional runs would his defense save? Could he develop into an MVP candidate with a full season of production? Those questions remain central to his legacy. Buxton continues to deliver when he plays, but the Twins and their fans have spent much of his career imagining what might happen if he could stay on the field.

Justin Morneau

Morneau's career provides another example of a player whose trajectory changed because of circumstances beyond his control. Unlike Buxton, Morneau had already established himself as one of baseball's premier hitters before a devastating injury interrupted his prime.

Morneau won the American League Most Valuable Player Award in 2006 after batting .321 with 34 home runs and 130 RBI. He followed that performance with another excellent season in 2007 before finishing second in MVP voting in 2008. From 2006 through 2009, he was one of the most productive middle-of-the-order hitters in baseball and a central figure in Minnesota's lineup.

His 2010 season offered another glimpse of his potential. Morneau was hitting .345 with 18 home runs and 56 RBI through 81 games. His .437 on-base percentage and .618 slugging percentage ranked among the league's best, and he had been selected as the American League's starting first baseman for the All-Star Game. 

Then came July 7, 2010. While sliding into second base to break up a double play against Toronto, Morneau collided with the knee of Blue Jays infielder John McDonald and suffered a concussion. He missed the rest of the regular season and the postseason, leaving Minnesota without one of its most important hitters during a division-winning campaign.

Morneau returned in 2011, but additional concussion symptoms and other injuries kept him from regaining his previous level of consistency. He continued playing for several more seasons, including winning the National League batting title with Colorado in 2014, but his prime years in Minnesota were largely behind him.

Morneau deserves recognition for what he accomplished. He was a four-time All-Star, an MVP and one of the defining players of the Twins' competitive teams in the 2000s. Still, it is difficult not to wonder what the rest of his career might have looked like without that concussion.

Would he have remained a perennial MVP candidate? Could he have helped Minnesota advance further in the postseason? How many more productive seasons might he have delivered in the middle of the lineup? Those questions place Morneau squarely in the What-ifs category. His accomplishments stand on their own, but the injury that interrupted his 2010 season changed the course of his career and left fans wondering about the production that never came.

Prodigies

The Sporting News' Prodigies room celebrates players who captured the baseball world's imagination early in their careers. These players arrived in the major leagues with unusual talent, delivered impressive performances at a young age and inspired expectations that they could become something special. Their stories are about the excitement of discovering a young player who appears destined for stardom. 

The Twins have seen several young players emerge with tremendous promise. Francisco Liriano and Butch Wynegar stand out because of how quickly they established themselves and how much excitement they generated early in their careers.

Francisco Liriano

When Liriano arrived in Minnesota's rotation in 2006, he looked like a future ace. The left-hander was only 22 years old, but his combination of velocity, movement and a devastating slider made him one of the most exciting young pitchers in baseball.

Liriano began the season in the bullpen before moving into the rotation in May. The results were extraordinary. He finished the year with a 12-3 record and a 2.16 ERA in 28 appearances, including 16 starts. He struck out 144 batters in 121 innings, earned an All-Star selection and finished third in American League Rookie of the Year voting. His 2.16 ERA and 144 strikeouts were particularly impressive for a pitcher who had not yet completed his first full major league season. 

At the All-Star break, Liriano was 10-1 with a 1.83 ERA. He appeared capable of joining Johan Santana as one of the American League's dominant left-handed starters. Twins fans had reason to believe they were watching the emergence of another frontline pitcher who could anchor the rotation for years.

That dream was interrupted by elbow problems. Liriano made only two starts during the final two months of 2006 before undergoing Tommy John surgery that cost him the entire 2007 season and much of 2008. He eventually returned to become a productive major league pitcher, recording 112 career victories and earning Comeback Player of the Year honors in both leagues. However, he never quite replicated the dominance he displayed during his remarkable rookie campaign.

Liriano fits the Prodigies room because of the excitement surrounding his arrival. He was not simply a promising prospect who needed several seasons to develop. He immediately challenged established major league hitters and looked capable of becoming one of baseball's best pitchers. 

His career ultimately became a story of perseverance, reinvention and flashes of brilliance. Yet the memories of 2006 remain powerful because they offered Twins fans a glimpse of what Liriano might have become had his arm remained healthy.

Butch Wynegar

Wynegar arrived in Minnesota with a different kind of promise. The young catcher made his major league debut in April 1976 at just 20 years old, skipping Double-A and Triple-A entirely. By the end of his first season, he had established himself as one of the most exciting young position players in the American League.

Wynegar hit .260 with 10 home runs, 69 RBI and a .356 on-base percentage in 149 games as a rookie. His performance earned him an All-Star selection, and he finished second in American League Rookie of the Year voting behind Mark Fidrych. The Sporting News also named him its Rookie of the Year.

Those accomplishments were especially impressive for a young catcher, a demanding position that requires handling a pitching staff while contributing offensively. Wynegar quickly demonstrated that he could manage both responsibilities, giving Minnesota a promising building block behind the plate.

He followed his rookie season with another All-Star selection in 1977. That year, he drove in a career-high 79 runs and continued developing into one of the league's better defensive catchers. At that point, the Twins had every reason to believe they had found a foundational player who could remain behind the plate for years.

Wynegar went on to play 13 seasons in the major leagues, finishing with 1,102 hits, 65 home runs, 506 RBI and a .348 on-base percentage. He spent the early portion of his career with Minnesota before being traded to the New York Yankees in May 1982. His career was respectable, but the initial excitement surrounding his arrival never quite translated into the sustained superstardom some anticipated.

That does not diminish what Wynegar accomplished. Becoming an All-Star at age 20 while playing such a demanding defensive position is an exceptional achievement. His immediate success captured the imagination of Twins fans and made him one of the most intriguing young players in the league.

Wynegar fits the Prodigies category because his story began with such promise. He arrived in the majors before many players his age had reached the upper levels of the minor leagues and immediately performed like an established big leaguer. His career may not have reached every expectation attached to that beginning, but his early accomplishments remain noteworthy.

Four Careers, Four Different Paths

Buxton, Morneau, Liriano and Wynegar illustrate two different sides of baseball's fascination with potential. Buxton and Morneau established themselves as impact players, but injuries left important questions about how much more they could have accomplished. Liriano and Wynegar generated excitement almost immediately, giving fans reason to believe they were watching the beginning of extraordinary careers.

The Sporting News' room concept encourages fans to look beyond traditional rankings and consider how circumstances and expectations shape a player's legacy. In Minnesota, these four careers show why greatness is not always measured solely by accumulated statistics or awards.

Sometimes greatness is about what a player achieved despite adversity. Other times, it is about the extraordinary promise that made fans dream about what could come next.

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What other players fit into the above categories? Leave a comment and start the discussion.

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[arby58]

Rod Carew was ROY at age 21 and never looked back. He should have been prodigy number 1.

[soyouresayingtheresachance]

Could add Mauer to the list, too. If he hadn't dealt with the issues that eventually moved him to 1B, how much better of a career would he have had then? 

Same with Kirby Puckett. Had that pitch not hit him in the face, how much longer could he have played? 

Sure, these guys are HOF already, but injuries really took a lot from them, as well. 

 

[Andy MacPhail]

4 great examples of players, who really tugged at our hearts & dreamed on. We still love these players but they came short of our dream expectations, Carew fulfilled our dreams but not all with us. Puckett & Mauer didn't fulfilled all of our dreams but still made the HOF. 

[IndianaTwin]

1 hour ago, arby58 said:

Rod Carew was ROY at age 21 and never looked back. He should have been prodigy number 1.

 

1 hour ago, soyouresayingtheresachance said:

Could add Mauer to the list, too. If he hadn't dealt with the issues that eventually moved him to 1B, how much better of a career would he have had then? 

Same with Kirby Puckett. Had that pitch not hit him in the face, how much longer could he have played? 

Sure, these guys are HOF already, but injuries really took a lot from them, as well. 

 

 

16 minutes ago, Andy MacPhail said:

4 great examples of players, who really tugged at our hearts & dreamed on. We still love these players but they came short of our dream expectations, Carew fulfilled our dreams but not all with us. Puckett & Mauer didn't fulfilled all of our dreams but still made the HOF. 

Remember that a player can only be used once. Cody has already used Carew, Puckett and Mauer elsewhere, so unless you think they fit better here than as Inner Circle or Immortal players, they aren't eligible here.