MINNEAPOLIS — “Urgency” was the Minnesota Twins’ theme Wednesday night at Target Field, and it might be the case for the rest of the season.
With a well-rested bullpen and an off day Thursday, manager Rocco Baldelli gave rookie starter Zebby Matthews a quick hook in the fourth inning and leaned heavily on relievers Cole Sands, Caleb Thielbar, Jorge Alcala, Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran to cover 5 2/3 innings in a 6-4 win over the Los Angeles Angels.
Jax, who typically pitches only one inning to conserve his season-long workload, recorded six outs for the first time since July 2022. Two scoreless frames lowered his ERA to 1.95, with 84 strikeouts in 64 2/3 innings.
“There’s urgency,” Baldelli said. “We’ve got to find ways to win any way possible. (Wednesday) it meant going to the bullpen and going to them early. And we had guys (warming) up earlier than that. They were getting hot in case we needed them.”
Griffin Jax, Filth. pic.twitter.com/s1ZnAthCN9
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 12, 2024
With the win, the Twins improved to 78-68 and maintained their three-game lead over the Detroit Tigers for the American League’s third and final wild-card spot, and moved to 1 1/2 games behind the Kansas City Royals for the No. 2 wild-card position.
And then after the game, Baldelli announced that center fielder Byron Buxton will be activated from the injured list Friday, rejoining the roster for the final 16 games as the Twins fight for a playoff berth.
Buxton has been sidelined since Aug. 12 with a hip injury, and the Twins’ fill-in center fielders have struggled in his absence, with Austin Martin (15 starts), Willi Castro (6), Manuel Margot (4) and DaShawn Keirsey Jr. (3) combining to hit just .209 with a .538 OPS in 28 games.
And the Twins went 12-16 during that stretch, clearly missing Buxton’s game-changing impact on both sides of the ball. Even after sitting out the past month, Buxton still ranks second on the Twins in Wins Above Replacement, per FanGraphs.
He played 90 of the first 118 games, looking very close to his Gold Glove-winning prime in center field and hitting .275/.334/.528 with 16 homers to rank second among all MLB center fielders in slugging percentage and OPS behind only Aaron Judge.
“It’s exciting,” said Royce Lewis, who snapped a lengthy slump by going 2-for-4 with a two-run double that was nearly a grand slam. “I think it’s great for everyone because it’s a glimmer of hope, no matter how we were feeling or what was going on in the past.”
Royce Lewis missed his sixth career grand slam by a foot.
It would have tied him for seventh-most in #MNTwins history.
Instead, he’ll have to settle for a two-run double. Lewis is now 9-for-17 (.529) with 30 RBIs in his career with the bases loaded.pic.twitter.com/UWS9Vx2dhx
— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) September 12, 2024
Like many veteran players, Buxton preferred not to go on a minor-league rehab assignment, so the Twins essentially brought the rehab assignment to him Wednesday by having minor-league pitchers throw him live batting practice at Target Field.
It’s not ideal, as Buxton could be rusty after a month without any game action and hasn’t fully tested his injured hip under game conditions. But with just 16 games remaining and the Twins’ playoff odds swinging wildly with each win or loss, his return is part of the team’s urgency.
“There’s going to be urgency all the way through this,” Baldelli said. “And we have to win.”
In another sooner-than-expected move, the Twins activated Margot from the injured list, without a rehab assignment, prior to Wednesday’s game. Margot has been out since Aug. 31 with a strained groin and the Twins optioned Michael Helman to Triple-A St. Paul to make room on the roster for the veteran backup outfielder’s return.
And the return of Margot, a right-handed hitter capable of playing all three outfield spots, also played a part in the Twins choosing to send down Martin, rather than Keirsey, to make room for Buxton.
Martin was the primary fill-in center fielder while Buxton was out and hit well during that time, batting .304 with a .771 OPS in 22 games, but the Twins prefer Keirsey’s superior speed and defense in what figures to be a part-time bench role.
Of course, that all depends on Buxton staying healthy for the next three weeks and, the Twins hope, into October. But he’s missed a month and no one, including Buxton, knows quite what to expect as he attempts to play through a recurring hip problem that is likely not 100 percent healed.
Carlos Correa joined Buxton in taking pregame batting practice against minor leaguers Wednesday, the latest indication that the injured shortstop could also be relatively close to returning from the plantar fasciitis that has sidelined him since mid-July, before the All-Star break.
If the Twins had more time, Buxton and Correa would no doubt take it. But they don’t. What they’ve got left is 16 games and a lot of urgency.
(Photo of Buxton: Adam Bettcher / Getty Images)
