Byron Buxton still hasn’t gotten over the Twins trapping him in the minor leagues even though he was healthy enough to join the team following an injury late last season.
In fact, when a reporter asked him a question about the situation on Tuesday, Buxton interrupted and, according to multiple media outlets, said: “Pissed? Yes, I ain’t sugarcoating nothing. Simple as that.”
Minnesota could’ve made Buxton one of their September call-ups, but General Manager Thad Levine said they decided to shut him down so he could recover from lingering wrist pain that was bothering him since he suffered a sprain in July.
But Buxton had been on a tear at the plate at Triple-A Rochester for a couple of weeks prior to the decision, which he admitted shocked and surprised him.
“It kind of didn’t go over well so I’d rather not say anything about it,” Buxton said, adding that he still wants to finish his career in Minnesota.
“I wouldn’t say we on the same page but I ain’t gonna cause head-butting between us because I want to be here,” he said. “It’s where I started my career, it’s where I want to finish my career. It’s where my teammates, where my brothers are … so it kind of is what it is.”
While Levine and the Twins claimed Buxton’s service time in the major leagues wasn’t a factor in the decision to shut him down, it’s hard to ignore the fact that Buxton was just 13 games shy of making himself eligible for free agency in 2021. The fact that he didn’t play those 13 games means the Twins control him through 2021, and he can’t become a free agent until 2022.
“It’s business. They did what they did, I do what I do,” said Buxton.
Buxton played in just 28 games with the Twins this season before migraines, a fractured toe and sprained wrist sent him spiraling in the wrong direction.
