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There is no development the Twins would have welcomed less Wednesday night than a potential injury problem for All-Star center fielder Byron Buxton. He's been the linchpin of an already wobbly lineup and the heartbeat of the team all season, and he's set to represent the American League in both the Home Run Derby and the All-Star Game next week in his native Georgia. Alas, an errant Cade Horton fastball left Buxton's hand hurting, and he was removed when his spot in the order came back around in the second.
Buxton did stay in to run the bases, stealing one and scoring on a Ryan Jeffers single. He played defense in the top of the second, making a fine catch on a long drive by Pete Crow-Armstrong. However, it surprised no one when he was lifted at the next opportunity.
We'll share more updates here when the Twins make them available, including any comments from manager Rocco Baldelli (or Buxton himself) postgame. In the meantime, see below for our lively game thread and join the discussion. The good news: the Twins did jump out to a quick 2-0 lead on the NL Central-leading Cubs, for the second night in a row, and they extended that lead in the second via a skyscraping Matt Wallner home run.
UPDATE: The Twins announced that Buxton left the game with a left hand contusion. That's what we'd hear almost regardless of severity, at this stage, so expect further discussion and questions about X-rays after the game. For now, though, it's a relief not to immediately hear of a break. If Buxton just needs time for the swelling on the hand to come down, he could still participate in All-Star festivities, or even play this weekend against Pittsburgh.
POSTGAME: Manager Rocco Baldelli said it looks as though Buxton has avoided the worst possible damage.
"Buck looks like he'll be ok, he had some imaging done and it looks pretty good," Baldelli said. Indeed, X-rays on the hand were negative. Baldelli did say, however, that his star slugger is "pretty sore". It seems a safe bet that he'll be absent from the lineup Thursday, but he's day-to-day, and the team is not ruling anything out.
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