Twins 2019 Position Analysis: Center Field

This is it. This is the year Buxton becomes a bonafide MVP candidate. 

Buxton MVP candidate?    Didn't he have a 5 for 5 game early on?  Since then, he is 2 for 15 for a .134 average.  I sure hope he can turn it around....but it seems like there are going to be a lot of strike outs and probably a sub .250 batting average.    We can still hang our hat on his defense though.......which still makes him a starter!

I don't know what to believe, but happy he finally is just going to be himself and not adjust his approach for the 20+ "coaches" telling him what he needs to change. He has the talent, but even adding 10 pounds of muscle won't allow him to make contact more often unless he believes in himself and the player he is.

Stop the over-coaching and let him be the player he is. If that doesn't work (please, please, please let it work!) we have to move on. 

No doubt that Buxton can hit a fastball.  Question is, can he recognize a breaking ball let alone hit it, particularly the one 6 inches to a foot off the plate?

Expectations for Buxton and Sano are close to zero for me.   I think the FO extended the correct players so far (just hope they are still talking to Berrios).

With that said, I agree with Nick.   A 701 OPS season from Buxton makes him a quality CF option.   Even at a 650 OPS, you have to play him every day and bat him 9th.   His defense and disruption ability on the basepaths make up the difference.   If it gets worse than that, he probably becomes a LHP platoon option and late inning defensive replacement.

I'm definitely not going to set myself up for more disappointment with these two.

Lower the bar and you'll have a good time.

No doubt that Buxton can hit a fastball.  Question is, can he recognize a breaking ball let alone hit it, particularly the one 6 inches to a foot off the plate?

Spoiiler alert: No, he won't be able to hit one 6-12" off the plate.  

I'm not sure what to think of Buxton. I want him to be a force to be reckoned with, but I'm not that confident. I think it would be so great if he started bunting. Early in the Kirbster's career he often bunted to get on base, especially to snap out of a slump. It seems as if Buxton doesn't take it upon himself to bunt. I recall him bunting twice last year, both at the direction of Molitor. (Correct me if I'm in error.) I think it's a waste not to bunt with his speed. Mickey Rivers used to cause havoc because he was good at bunting, so the corners had to cheat in. It didn't matter much. If he laid down a good bunt, he'd be standing at second base more often than not. *Sigh*

This is it. This is the year Buxton becomes a bonafide MVP candidate. 

Or, if he doesn't prove himself at least capable offensively, it's just it.  I sure hope you're right though!  Really like the kid.  Seems to have used the September debacle as a motivator.  

  Since the article is about "Position Analysis", I'll say that if Buxton fails, the big league club is in pretty good hands with some combo of Kepler, Rosario, Cave.  Also, if Lewis doesn't stick as a SS, I wonder what the chances are of FO moving him to CF if Buxton can't hack it?

Stop over-coaching? Everything points in the opposite direction doesn't it? The entire spring training throughout the whole system is flooded with coaches and former players. All coaching and instructing.

The problem is that OF cannot be elite. What Buxton can provide, if he becomes what we hope, is elite. And it elevates Rosario and Kepler.

 

I hope people don't take too much from Buxton crushing fastballs the first two weeks of spring. April is our true test, anything before that is just nice to hear, but mostly meaningless.

Absolutely 100% agree. But at least we wont see Grossman, Shane Robinson etc out there

That Tanner English is "depth" is kinda depressing.

 

.233/.313/.417 for an outfielder, any outfielder, is NEVER "appealing". The whole modern day acceptance of center fielders and catchers and shortstops being bad hitters, and that is acceptable even with elite fielding, is hogwash. Every MLB player, when all they do is play baseball, needs to aspire and acheive hitting and fielding. For a line like that to be 'more appealing' in center than right is just settling for mediocrity.

It may not be appealing, but it is reality for half the league. There were 14 qualified center fielders with an OPS higher than .730 in 2018.

It may not be appealing, but it is reality for half the league. There were 14 qualified center fielders with an OPS higher than .730 in 2018.

Shouldn't we be looking for better than league average with Buxton? if all he is is a career .730 OPS guy, that will be disappointing... He's supposed to be a star.

A few thoughts, rather than a bunch of quoting:

 

1] Agree with Thrylos in regard to Badoo and Keirsey. Not sure about Kerrigan.

 

2] Really thought/hoped/predicted English was going to surpass Granite last season. Then they both had bad years. I think English still has potential, but he needs a healthy and productive 2019 or he will not only be passed, but probably gone.

 

3] While a bit of a question mark, especially after battling injuries in 2018, I wouldn't fall asleep on Aaron Whitefield. If we are talking talent and potential, this kid has to be included.

 

4] I don't buy Lewis in CF, though I'm sure he could do very well there. I just don't see why he can't stick at SS with time and ironing out a few things. Further, even if the very talented Javier were to be the better option, Lewis could potentially move to 3B rather than the OF, (as could Javier potentially in a reverse scenario). Potentially, either of them could make for an outstanding overall 3B with defense and offense rather than a move to the OF where it seems the Twins have a lot of nice options.

 

Lastly, Buxton himself. Despite potential, will he ever achieve the potential he has, and others have speculated he has? Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe his close to 2017 was merely an illusion. But please don't let "potential" and a horrible and cluster-filled 2018 season cloud real possibility. Hunter wasn't Hunter for a couple of seasons. Painful reminder or not, examine Aaron Hicks, as was brought up, and what he has done, or Gomez, also rushed, and then moved on before a series of some nice seasons elsewhere.

 

Muscled up now or not, Buxton had pretty good power beforehand. He has game changing speed and defense. Touched on, but i will expand, if he only hits .250-.260 and isn't a SO windmill, be can be an All Star and game changer. Hitting .270-.280 he can be elite.

 

I think his anger and disappointment has transformed to determination. Knock on wood for good luck/karma that weird and nagging injuries are mostly behind him, I think he's poised for a very nice season...even if his touching his ceiling is still a year or two away.

Moving Lewis to 3B would be awful asset management. His best tool is his speed. This would be like converting Mike Trout into a pitcher.

I'm going to draft him for the 3rd straight season in my fantasy league. No way I'm letting someone else get him after I've suffered so much over the past 2 years.

I think of the offensive floor for a CF with elite defensive value as being Gary Pettis. (Sadly, only useful for those that remember Pettis. I'm old.) In his prime, Pettis was OPS+'ing 90-ish...or, if you prefer, was wRC+'ing mid 80's to low 90's. That's basically what Buxton was in 2016 and 2017 (Pettis more OBP/stolen bases, Buxton more SLG). Of course Pettis played 150 games/year in his prime, but a theoretical healthy Buxton doesn't have to be much better than that to add value to a contending team. I'm still reasonably confident he can be that good or better.

The disappointing part of that is...if he doesn't develop offense significantly better than that, his career won't be very long. As soon as one loses the elite speed/range in CF, that level of offense is relatively easy to replace in CF, and it doesn't play in the corners.