insagt1

He may never be 'not sore'. His career arc has been one injury after another...not hyperbole or exaggeration. The dude just can't stay healthy. There will be a limit though, to how much more of this the Twins can handle. It just totally stinks that one of the most exciting players of this day...can't play. If they are 'babying; him (you all pick the correct term that suits it) this much now, how can anyone possibly think he will be able to play much the rest of the season?

Twins can't string together a significant winning streak...so they continue to march in place, falling backward gently every week. The lineup changes every night. Usually when that happens, you are a bottom feeder. So have the Twins noticed something with Buxton that makes them reluctant to bring him back up? thats their call of course. But eventually, he is going to have to try playing with the big boys again. I don't think there is a person here who honestly believes he won't be back on the IL before too long.

Just an aside to the conversation...Buck may never be 'ready' as we know it. When he is 'ready' he gets hurt on a regular basis. If they wait until he is 'perfect'...his history has shown it won't matter. His body apparently can't take the grind that he requires of it. Trying to muzzle that in any way is just a temporary 'fix' that won't work. If he isn't diving for balls, crashing into walls, running his behind off...he isn't Buxton. But with that comes the injuries. I don't think there is any solution to this. Wish there was. As another aside...a few years ago Sano got sent to the Red Wings on a rehab. I recall we watched him totally butcher several plays at 3rd base and asking 'really'?? He also struck out here as frequently as up there. He played a handful of games (very few) and he was back up. (Sano's body type quite a bit different than Buxton's!)

Actually for years pitchers made at least 40 starts; threw 300 innings; completed 15 or 20 games per season and routinely threw more than 100 pitches. And not all of them...in fact probably not very many..ruined their careers doing so. Not saying the players are necessarily 'soft', but it sure is a different game today.....and the basic rules have sort of stayed the same. I'm not for throwing players under the bus, but they are paid to play a game. And some are paid A LOT to play (or sit) If you are a fan in Boston for example, and you pay ridiculous prices to watch ONE regular season game, I guess you are entitled to see the best available, as often as possible. But thats certainly a subject that is debated long and loud.

I honestly believe that those 3 pitchers out of the pen today are successfully pitching themselves off this team. All 3 are seriously not worthy of a major league roster spot...even on a team as hapless as the Twins are turning out to be. As we get into the middle of June, what is happening is they tease us with a win twice a week...maybe 3 times for special occasions...but thats about it. The pitching cupboard is bare. Astros are good...but not THAT good. Batting practice is supposed to take place prior to the game.

Disappointed that Gordon isn't playing as well as Buxton...would have been nice to have him return in front of the home crowd. I don't know why the braintrust is keeping him in St.Paul anymore. Like I have mentioned before...his shelflife is brief. Don't waste these few games playing in the minors.

I agree its time to stop ragging on Polanco. He has definitely stepped up his game., and thats a relief! Get Buxton back up here! Don't waste anymore healthy games in the minors. The shelflife of a healthy Buxton is very short. If we can get another 15 games out of him...let it be as a Twin. I know I'm a cynic, but the history speaks loudly. Like to add this comment: Every year I attend an annual insurance conference in Binghamton NY. For several years our company has sponsored a golf tournament for The Black Aces for which Mudcat Grant took the lead for many years, while healthy. Had the pleasure of speaking with him on these occasions and it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Last one of these before COVID we got to mix it up with Al Downing. Told him when I was at Navy Supply Corps School in Athens in 1974, we would often venture to Atlanta to see some baseball. I said, I was at one particular game that was very special that April. He looked up, smiled and said, 'yeah, I was there'!! then he signed a baseball for me..

I have noticed this too since his return....he's definitely not the same hitter and it has to be because of the wrist. I agree it should be the medical staff making the decision before he ruins his career....especially in a season where the Twins aren't going anywhere. Saw the similar thing play out in the NHL playoffs with Tuuka Rask. He was playing hurt...claimed he was good to go...then gave up 8 goals in 2 games, pretty much costing the Bruins the series. He had no business playing with what we are now learning were pretty serious injuries. I think Kirilloff should probaby have the surgery and plan on coming back stronger next April.

someone said this team just can't build on a great game. Always something standing in the way. If our lineup was healhy, I don't think we would be this awful. The bullpen is beyond repair...just shuffling the same deck chairs on the Titanic, waiting for it to finally sink. the rotation has been remarkably awful. Didn't really expect that. Even the 'good ones' barely get thru 5 innings. There is no guarantee in baseball that any high draft pick or highly touted 'prospect' will turn a team around. So that type of trade is always very risky. Buxton's health could be a big factor in his trade value. It will be pointed out that he can't stay on the field. I think Kirilloff is on borrowed time this season. His swing since coming back is not the same. Clearly his wrist still hurts. He could be shut down and headed for surgery by the AllStar break. Kepler has turned into Buxton-lite. He also can't stay healthy. This is Cruz's last season in Minnesota. Question is when does the last season part begin? Simmons has turned out to be a good average player at best. Sometimes makes the highlight reel play, but not enough to push out perhaps a Gordon or someone else coming up. Berrios is 6-2 with a high-ish ERA. If he's the best we've got, we have an 'ace' who might win 12 games with an ERA of around 4.50. Do the Twins blow up this team? I don't think so. Will they finish above .500? Only if the injuries stop and most stop having career underachieving years. They need pitching...and that doesn't grow on trees...nor can young prospects be counted on to plug the holes, without at least 3 or 4 solid veterans. Viewing the 9th inning last night reinforced why this year's Twins are so hard to watch.

Anyone know if Buxton will be back for tomorrows game. Or are they saving him for the all star break!

Its a long season and bad teams lose a lot of games like this one. Just one more total failure of the bullpen to make a decent showing with the game on the line. Never helps to get beat by an ex-teammate too

Gift wrapped this one. What a miserable show in the 9th by Shoemaker.

well Shoemaker sucks as a starter and as a reliever. This is Twins baseball at its worst in 2021. When it really counts, the pen can;t get it done. That was way too easy.

This mess is completely on Duffy. The wild pitch cost the run...but the walk and hit batter didn't help. Has to drive a manager nuts when his bullpen comes in to shut things down and instead, they can't throw strikes.

Appears that perhaps Cruz, Sano and Donaldson are regaining their stroke? if so, imagine what the lineup would look like with Buxton in there for a game or two! time to bring him up...and for heaven's sake, play him. He was out for a month. Time to earn the paycheck....and see if he really can handle the grind, or not.

I could watch the replay of the 9th inning over and over and over. It wasn't like we hit those HR's off of Shoemaker! We beat their best and it feels real good. We slayed the Kracken, for at least one night!! I missed the live action too...was watching Vegas-Avs' hockey game. Figured it was the better choice. Twins should play Gordon (until he gets hurt)? Similar to Refsnyder. Interesting that Simmons recently has perked up slightly. (enhancing his trade value) Yesterday was the first day in ages where Cruz looked like Cruz again. If Buxton comes back in the next couple days..what does everyone think as to how many games he plays until the next breakdown? 5,10,15? Or fewer? Twins rotation is still a trainwreck. Probably won't get fixed this season. Anyone at St Paul ready to kick the can?

The next Buxton could be in Baltimore. Cedric Mullins made a Buxton-highlight reel diving catch by covering half the state of Maryland! He is turning heads with his glove and he is in the top 3 leaders in hits in the AL. It wasn't that long ago he was going so poorly, the O's demoted him directly to AA and not AAA. He has been relatively healthy too. Watch for this guy. Polanco seems to have found his bat finally. Gordon needs to be in there. simmons isn't going to be a Twin very long. Lets see what Gordon can bring.

Twins can't beat the Yankees. That anyone can take to the bank. Regular season, playoffs...doesn't matter. Twins can't win. Their pitchers are no match for the hitters...its pretty sad. But this season, Twins are struggling to beat anyone, so that dilutes the angst somewhat.

No matter who is penciled in...the results are sub-par. Guys aren't getting it done. What I think about Buxton would be this: once he comes back please play him EVERYDAY. Stop with the coddling and worrying that every inning he will re-injure himself. If this guy cannot handle the everyday grind of a major leaguer, then there is no place on this roster for him. Harsh? Not at all. If you can only play 3 or 4 days a week and stay off the IL for only a few weeks at a time, what good can come of it? Twins must find out if Buxton can play regularly, or move him for someone who can. Personally the thought of losing him makes my stomach turn...but conversely, the thought that when he returns you have to handle him with kid gloves, given his history also makes no sense. Only way we'll know is if he is thrown out there everyday (within reason of course). I'm growing very weary of having to 'rest' our regulars for fear they will hurt themselves. They don't pay you to sit. They pay you to perform. End of rant.

Well, that was one butt ugly baseball game. No pitching, no defense and a perfect tonic for a struggling Yankee team that hasn't scored this many runs since May 15th. Just about every inning was an adventure. And Twins looked bad doing it. Tomorrow will be a mismatch of epic proportions. Can we just fast forward to Thursday? Not pretty.

The O's would be totally nuts to trade Mancini. He is young and would be the centerpiece of a team that is trying to become competitive. He could never be replaced for value. I doubt he's going anywhere.

I have to think Buxton is on an 0-2 count, with one strike left before the Twins finally say 'enough'. If he comes back later this week and manages to stay in the lineup up to the trade deadline....he could have improved his trade value; or Twins may give him one more kick at the can in Minnesota. But if he comes back, and re-inures himself shortly thereafter...I think he's totally done in a Twins uniform. I'm not hoping for that because you always want one of the leagues most exciting players to be on your team....but the guy has to be in the lineup, not on the bench or in the training room.

After looking like little leaguers for the 1st two games, Twins came back nicely and actually looked like a regular, normal team competing to win ballgames. 2 very nice 1 run wins. Rogers got it done today. Twins still have a lightyear of ground to make up but maybe if they get a few more healthy bodies back, they can reverse this miserable season. Despite the k's, Sano contributed importantly in both the wins. Credit where due....doesn't happen that much this season. Winning is always more fun. (sidenote..O's beat down Cleveland today bigtime and have now won 4 of 5 after the 14 game losing streak. Mullins had 9 straight hits in the series. ..give the O's some pitching and, and, and...they may win as many games as the Twins!!!!?

I believe the Twins have a slightly better than .500 roster this season...if they were healthy. Gotta admit the injuries have been brutal. Then add to that, most all the big dollar acquisitions are 'enjoying' maybe a career worst season. And top it off with even the ones the Twins rely on, when healthy, are all under-performing. Its a perfect storm of failure. So it might be hard to know if this really is a 'bad team'. Would be nice to see their 'A' lineup playing together for a span of a month to see what they have. Try to imagine what a healthy Buxton might add to this ballclub. So far, we have never enjoyed that luxury. He just can't stay on the field. Imagine what we expected from Kepler, that we aren't getting. Donaldson, Simmons, Arraez. Sano. Recently Polanco and Garver were stepping up...but now Garver is lost for several weeks. Did we really think our pen was going to be this awful...night in and night out? Did we expect the starters to win accolades when they were able to get thru 5 innings? One guy I won't 'blame' is Cruz. Father Time is running alongside him this season. Don't know how much more we can squeeze out of him. Baseball draft picks don't have the same weight as hockey or football. Expecting great things from grabbing a prospect/suspect isn't 'all that' in baseball.

Playing Simmons over Gordon today is just another reason why nothing has made sense this season. I wonder what other surprises the team has in store for us today. As for Sano's huge slump breaking HR....yeah, in football parlance it was hit in 'garbage time'...it was completely meaningless to the game, but maybe it let Sano think that he can still make contact once in awhile. If so, fine. But as the song goes, 'that don't impress me much'.