THE best player in baseball RIGHT NOW
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Gotta be Byron, right? Sort of a post hype prospect making good at age 27. As always, if he can stay healthy. A deeper dive from Matt Williams of NBC Edge:
Byron Buxton went 5-for-5 with his eighth home run, eighth double of the season, and a stolen base in Minnesota's 1-2 win over the Indians on Wednesday. The only hitters to record five hits that included a home run and stolen base while wearing a Twins uniform were Jacque Jones in 2003 and Boileryard Clarke in 1901 (No, Boileryard was not a typo).
There is not a single hitter on the planet hotter than Buxton and all you can do right now is sit back and enjoy the performance. The former first-round pick (second overall) is slashing .438/.471/.938 through 17 games and has posted the highest OPS in Twins history over that span:
2021: Byron Buxton, 1.409
2009: Joe Mauer, 1.288
1966: Tony Oliva, 1.270
2005: Justin Morneau, 1.266
Buxton currently boasts an otherworldly 24.4 percent barrel rate, 64.4 percent hard-hit rate, and .809 expected slugging percentage. Those marks are not only elite, they are the highest marks in all of baseball. It’s obvious that this level of excellence can’t be sustained, but as stated above, you should simply sit back and enjoy the performance.
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli placed Buxton in the leadoff position for the second time this season on Wednesday and suggested this could become a regular thing against southpaws this season. This could open up the possibility of more stolen bases down the road if Minnesota gives the green light. After all, Buxton was able to beat out an infield single earlier in the game with a sprint speed of 31.6 feet per second (30 is elite). It remains to be seen if aggressive base stealing is being tempered intentionally in order to keep the outfielder healthy.
In fantasy leagues, selling high would seem like a difficult decision to make. After all, who would want to move a player with a 257 wRC+ (157 percent better than the average major leaguer) and .535 wOBA? That decision comes down to the eye of the beholder.
What should you expect from Buxton moving forward? Popular projections had the Twins superstar batting .265 with around 30 home runs and 15 stolen bases. Do you expect much better from April 29 until the last game of the season? You easily could at this point, as Buxton has proven to have elite power with the upside to win a Most Valuable Player award.
However, there is still an elephant in the room that no one wants to talk about. Byron Buxton, at 27-years-old, has played over 92 games just once in his career. The most electric player in baseball has already missed time this season with patella tendonitis and a hamstring injury in addition to cracking his tooth on a steak. In his career, Buxton has missed extensive time with shoulder inflammation, right and left wrist injuries, toe fractures, thumb strains, groin strains, and concussions. They say that the biggest predictor of future injuries is past injuries. This may be an unfortunate point of view to hold, especially when talking about true five-tool talent. That is why this is in the eye of the beholder. You can gamble that Buxton has arrived and at 27-years-old can finally stay healthy, or you can cash in your chips for three to four times their original value.
One thing is for sure. Watching Byron Buxton play baseball this season has been a privilege. Hopefully, everyone can put fantasy baseball aside in order to truly appreciate what a special talent has been doing on the diamond in April. Enjoy the ride.
@JoeBanzai might be starting a new Master set soon 😉
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Comments
Damn that kid is En Fuego! Great write up Tim
Byrons on fire.
Give me Jacob Degrom though. Dominant starters are very important, especially come playoff time
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
That’s fine by me - he’s a legit ace.
But even legit ace Greg Maddux WILL tell you.
Chicks dig the long ball.
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you are correct, Chicks do dig the long ball. more so now than ever!
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
Could finally be busting out.
Fun contest, who will hold their early season .400 batting average the longest:
Yermin Mercedes
Trout
Buxton
Nice to see him playing well. You could always tell he had unusual talent, but he couldn't stay on the field.
Baldummy is a moron. Buxton should not bat lead off and not worry about stolen bases. Too much of a risk of more injuries.
Put him in the 3 spot if he is going to hit with this much power!
DeGrom has been a far superior player up until now, but at the moment Buxton is the best!
I am pulling for Buxton to keep this up. He was so hyped and had so much promise. I would hate to see him turn into a player like the Upton boys.
I guess the fun question would be, IF Buxton could stay healthy and keep up his production, could he still make a run at the HOF? this is his age 27 season. so it is a late start.
George Brett, Roger Clemens and Tommy Brady.
Absolutely he could if he has a ten year peak where he is this good(not 1.400 OPS good, nobody will do that, but a .950+ OPS from a speedy gold glove CF, yes).
Players have started their careers at age 23 and made easy HOF careers...think Edgar Martinez type of career start. Buxton may have been injured a lot, but he did start early and has some contribution prior to this year.
not all chicks
I love your positivity, but I doubt he has any shot at making a HOF run.
He would have to practically never get as much as a hang nail for the rest of his career. He hasn't really played a full year yet.
That being said he is one dynamic player. When healthy, the most all around talent I have ever seen!
Always hurt. His injuries have been pretty severe too.
The answer is Ronald Acuna Jr.
He's playing fantastic, but did you see Buxtons OPS+?
302!
Acuna has been the better player up until now, and he's younger, but Byron is off the charts right now.
I guess it depends how you define "right now". I'd like to think it means more than "player of the month", or even "week".
No HR but here's some good Buxton stuff.
https://www.facebook.com/Twins/videos/5493497330720406/
Yes. Trout clearly holds that title as best player in baseball right now. It will take more than a hot month from someone to supplant Trout...and Trout isn't doing so bad 'right now' either.
Buxton is an exciting player though. Good to see him putting it together.
This is my thread and the title was total clickbait. You got me.
However, I hope you don’t mind my sharing the fun story. Kids on fire and I hope he stays healthy...except for a little soreness that creeps up when they play the Yankees. 😂
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What round did you get Buxton in?
LOL...
This is my one and only team. ROTO STANDARD 5x5. I started the league 20 years ago. Off to a strong start...
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1054378/help-you-have-the-first-pick-in-fantasy-baseball-draft#latest
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And no, I don’t have him.
Someone else drafted him in the late teens.
😉
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Ah, ok. I noticed the fantasy aspect in the article. You have some strong pitching. Some bad luck with Dustin May last night. Incredible pitcher, but left with forearm problem and it didn't look good. Hopefully not the big one.
My first fantasy team was in 1986. Then re-started in 1992 and didn't stop until last year. Crazy thing is a few years ago I found my lists from 1986 and Pete Rose was on there...near the bottom by that time. I tossed them with all my other years draft sheets. It was time to clear the clutter and they weren't worth anything. Focus is elsewhere now.
The Buxton pick is the kind that wins leagues when you get him late like that. Also, the established injured or down year veteran from year before. For some reason people always looked past those guys based off of one hiccup and have laser focus on only the stats from the prior year.
Byron Buxton, American League player of the month.
Ronald Acuna Jr, National League player of the month.
Both having fantastic seasons!
Anyone say Mike trout yet?!
Sorry, he's a local guy and an eagles fan.
I'd love to see him flirt with .400 all season
Gonna get to see our Bravos and POTM Acuna next week. We got some good foul ball seats so maybe I can snag one...so long as this red head can stay in the day-game sun that is.
Player of The Month at the end of April isn't really a good yardstick. even using it, the case could be made for JD Martinez over Buxton in the AL and Kris Bryant in the NL. it's like trying to figure out who the best Teams are right now when it seems everyone is hovering close to .500: right now the A's are the "best" at +6, half of MLB is is .500 or lower and nine Teams would be at .500 with a three game losing streak.
better to wait for the All-Star break to get a feel for who's having a good season.
>
By then Buxton will be hurt.
I think people missed the point, here - I was just trying to highlight a kid who’s killing it, not make some declarative statement.
Click bait - not impugning other good players
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By then Buxton will be hurt.
you must be a prophet, he just went on the 10 day DL with a hip strain. strangely, on the same day Acuna, Jr. gets HBP and might sit for awhile. in the meantime, JD Martinez continues to play like a champion.
LOL You don't have to be a prophet to predict that this guy will be injured.
Too bad, he is a special player.