Kelly Vance

It doesn't work like that. When the ball is in the air, his job is to go get it. Come hell or high fences

No only the best defensive player in all of major league baseball.

He was hitting .385 since activated in August. It's Buck's job. Cave is at best a corner outfielder. Buck is the best defensive center fielder in all of baseball.

That is what there is to LOVE about him. He plays 100 percent. You see it as a negative? Man.

Quick, who was playing on a broken foot? Not a fair comparison.

Don't know what you are watching but he was hitting like a stud in AAA after being activated in August. Small sample size, but .385 is a Rod Carew number.

Anybody who has seen Belisle pitch knows that if he would have tried to hit Beltre, he woulda missed by a mile.

Ted, I agree 100 percent. Those critics that say Buck can't stay healthy are unfair and to the point of absurdity. Buck had migraines. They are debilitating at times. Heck Kareem Jabbar couldn't play in a 7th game of the NBA Finals because of them. Then Buck fouled a ball off his foot and broke it. What are the critics going to say about that? He should not have hit the foul? This is ridiculous. Buck goes all out on every play. He dives, crashes into walls and MAKES THE DAMN PLAY. He is a star, not a prospect. Last year he hit .300 for a long period after making an adjustment in his leg kick. This year the FO played him when he had a broken foot. Buck tried and I remind everyone, he still ran as hard as he could on a broken foot. He tried to compensate by swinging from his heels and trying to pull everything. But his BA plummeted. He should have never been on the field. Now a lot of people have found nothing good to say about a platinum glove center fielder who played hurt and tries his best on every play. Pitiful. What these ungrateful critics say says more about them than it does Buck. Buck is not a slave on their plantation. The FO blew it. I have posted what I think they should have done. Bring him up, blow off the year of control and offer him an extension to make that year of control a moot point. Instead, they treated him like just another prospect. They think that is going to motivate him? Well, maybe, but in a way we won't like. Buck is gone when he is able to leave. I hope Buck gets traded to a team that will appreciate his rare skills. The Twins will keep being a second rate team as long as they do things like this. And it is no surprise that the only times the Twins have won the series, they had brother man players. Gaetti, Kirby, T Rex, Gags, all made the team better than the sum of its parts. And all those arm chair general managers who are wise in their own eyes because they understand options, team control, stuff like that, don't know players at all. Its not about moving pawns around a chessboard. Players like to be respected. They like to be appreciated. Many of them will play for less if they feel wanted and treated like family. And intangibles like chemistry, loyalty, brotherhood, and espirit de corps help make a championship team. Those guys who have all that will look at the Twins and say "No thanks" when offered a contract. Because loyalty works both ways. That means the Twins will have to settle for stop gap mercenaries like LoMo and Lynn. Nice going front office. You just became Calvin Griffith.

He was hitting like a stud at the end of last year. He broke his toe and hurt his wrist this year. Don't talk about him like he is a lousy AA good field no hit. He hit .300 last year for a decent amount of time.And was the best defender in all of baseball.

River, we often agree, but you don't understand players if you think there is a shelf life on a big DISS like this.

You can't blame "Lack of durability" on a player that crashes into the wall and dives for fly balls for your entertainment. Unless, of course, you don't care about the effort displayed. And this has nothing to do with Cave, or Grossmann or Nick Punto. Does anybody really want to see Buck sent home so Fields and Grossman can get more at bats?

Im with ya.

This moves means they gotta trade him before his contract is over. Which means they want to help him play better.... for some other team

Well, they did it. They shut him down and they know it ticked him off. Levine said "From this day forward, I think we recognize a responsibility to make amends," Levine said. "And that we're going to need to invest in the relationship with Byron Buxton moving forward, because I think as much as we would like to believe that all the relationship building here to date will carry the day, we understand this is a blow to the player, a potential blow to the relationship and we're prepared to try and stay as consistent as we can and reinvest in that element of this because we realized this was information that was not appealing or certainly collaborative." Translation, "We know this will piss him off, but maybe we can give him something to smooth his ruffled feathers." Meaning: Buck is gone as soon as he can go free agent, and he won't sign an extension.

I knew somebody would bite. :-)

Wrist injuries heal slowly. I don't think they would be short sighted enough to use that for an excuse, especially if it weren't true.

he's not a clubhouse leader.... how do you know that? You don't. In fact, Joe is a great clubhouse leader.

Not surprised, but they didn't do it for Red Dawg.

Entitlement isn't the word exactly. There is a saying that you shouldn't lose your position because of injury. Yeah, well, tell that to Wally Pipp. If a better guy comes along, well, that's showbiz. This isn't about giving Bux anything. He's earned it. He broke his foot and played hurt to entertain you. Nobody needs to teach him a lesson. Guys that dive for balls don't have bad attitudes, as a rule. And guys who lack heart do not run as hard as Buck did on a broken foot. Unfortunately he started trying to compensate for the foot and it screwed up his swing. Easy to see. Nobody "outplayed" him, and certainly not Grossman. Meanwhile, they let his foot heal and he is playing again. When he is ready, timing wise, meaning his swing, not contract stuff, he should come up. Buck doesn't need to earn a spot at this point. He is not just our starting center fielder, he is the best center fielder in the entire sport. In fact he is the platinum glove winner for all of baseball last year. You don't see that as starter caliber but the rest of baseball sees it as All Star Caliber. Platinum glove means best in baseball. That is not a AAA player. By the way, this honor was well deserved. He worked his butt off last year earning it. Don't forget all that. Buck is not Willy Mays, but he is as good a fielder as Willy ever was. He has 50 + steal potential, if he could learn to get on base. He was only thrown out like once last year in something like 30 tries. Carew needs to teach him how to bunt. That would add 30 hits a year. My point is that this guy has potential high above the clouds on a "best in baseball" level. Those other guys you mention are just, well, other guys. I'm not handing out scholarships. But Buck has earned it, crashing into the wall and diving for catches just for your entertainment for several years now. He is one of the brightest stars in the game and I want to see him play, as soon as he is up to it. You don't treat a guy like him as if he is a minor leaguer on the bubble. Anyway, I have an ulterior motive. After showing I won't try to leverage him on the 1 year of control thing, I would ask him for something. I'd offer him 5 years at a fair price and see if he won't do it. If he wants to come up and you leverage him to gain a year of control, you guarantee he will leave as soon as he can.No way he signs an extension then. As for Sano, trying him in right field was the dumbest move ever. It raised eyebrows throughout baseball, and for good reason. The only reason they tried it was they liked Trevor, and he had no trade value. But I want to end on a positive note. Sano is slimmer and I think he will have a monster 2019. Buck needs to get himself right, and hopefully will in Minnesota this fall. Then he bounces back too. We have Polanco back, and for a full year. Eddie is back, and Keps and Mauer (hopefully) and Castro. Not a bad lineup. We need to figure out 2b. I am optimistic that EE will be back. Cave, Ehire and Garver as subs.

I think you miss my point. I am talking about cornerstone players and wanting to attract FA players that are studs, not utility guys. I am talking about building block players, not marginals and bubble players that are lucky to have a job. Those guys are a dime a dozen. Grossman is a AAA player who get the Kubel treatment. Does he deserve loyalty? Sure. And nobody would say the Twins have cheated that guy. He is about as good as thousands of guys who are playing slow pitch softball. But he is a marginal bubble player, not a guy with otherwordly talent like Buck. If he could catch a fly without spiking himself, I'd be more generous. My point is: When you want to attract good players, difference makers, (Grossman not being really one of those) you make them feel wanted. You don't exploit them or treat them like cattle. Guys on the bubble, well, they aren't difference makers. I mean, does anybody really care if Grossman walks? Cave is a 4th outfielder. I like him, but I wouldn't want him to necessarily sign a long term extension. We got other guys coming up. These guys, I would sign to long termers Sano, Buck, Eddie, Polanco, Berrios, Gibby, Less so but ok with Keps, maybe Austin Waiting for the payoff? Romero, Gonsalves, Short term extensions: Castro (if he returns healthy), Mauer, My point is that it is really, really dumb to treat star caliber guys like misfits. Just try telling your wife she is "good field, no hit" and see how passionate she is after that.

My answer to your questions is "So what?" It is never an "epic blunder" to play your best guys. Buck is our best outfielder. Period. He has some hitting habits he needs to fix, but if he is healthy, as soon as his timing is down he comes up. You don't treat these guys like cattle. You treat them like family and make them want to sign long term extensions.

I disagree either act is "shrewd." I would call them "self defeating" in the long run. I would also consider calling them "short sighted." or maybe "conniving." Like saying "Look, we know how to leverage players...ain't we smart?" Um, no. That's the Calvin Griffith way. You want good players to want to play here you treat them like family. Baseball is a business, but players like to be appreciated.

'Wood, I'm feeling you, and that is what is going to happen. I for one want more Mauer at bats with RISP.

"These are very important players, not to mention very likable players. So it creates an awkward situation when their own best interests conflict with those of the Twins." I don't agree with this at all. This is why there are baseball executives making decisions instead of .... us and..... " I can see why this is a much trickier equation than some make it out to be. Especially when you consider the inherent questions around Buxton's health (which would seemingly benefit from an extra month's rest tacked onto his offseason), and the lack of available playing time in the Twins outfield." Nick, he is our starting center fielder and a platinum glove winner. He is playing in AAA and doing well. He is good to go. Stop talking like he is a Faberge Egg.

A season is long enough for two hot streaks and two cold streaks.