When Byron Buxton launched a lead-off home run against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night, he put himself in some elite company.
Buxton had already become the fourth player in franchise history to hit at least 50 home runs over a 162-game stretch, but with another bomb in Arizona, he’s continued his development as one of the best power hitters in baseball.
Byron Buxton has hit 52 home runs in his last 162 games.
He's the 4th Twins player to hit 50 homers in a 162-game span, joining Nelson Cruz, Roy Sievers, and Harmon Killebrew. pic.twitter.com/e7yNu4Jxc0
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 18, 2022
Because of injuries and the COVID-shortened 2020 season, Buxton’s most recent 162 games date back to July 13, 2019, but during that stretch he has hit 52 home runs and has a .611 slugging percentage.
Those numbers are even more deceiving when you consider that Buxton didn’t hit over the final two months of the 2019 season, serving as a defensive replacement due to a shoulder injury.
A more accurate representation of Buxton’s dominance can be seen at the beginning of the 2020 season, where his 51 home runs since rank 32nd among all major league hitters. This becomes even more impressive when you consider Buxton has only played in 149 games over that stretch.
No player has played in fewer games and hit more home runs than Buxton. Mike Trout is a distant second with 43 dingers in 147 games over that time frame.
Trout is also the nearest comparison in terms of slugging percentage as his .621 mark leads all MLB hitters with Buxton second at .610.
Buxton’s ability to hit the ball over the fence has also made him one of the top hitters this season. Buxton is tied for second in the majors with 19 homers and his .581 slugging percentage ranks eighth.
Fans may gripe about Buxton’s availability, but he is currently on pace to play in 75 percent (or roughly 120) of the Twins’ games this season. If he continues at his current pace, Buxton would wind up with about 46 homers by the end of the year.
That total would be tied for fourth in Twins history with Harmon Killebrew, who smacked 46 home runs during the 1961 season. In fact, Killebrew is the only player that would have hit more than home runs in a season as he holds the eight of the top 10 spots in Twins single-season history.
In addition, Buxton would become just the eighth player in the past 10 years to hit at least 46 home runs and a .581+ slugging percentage in a season if he keeps up his current production. The last Twin to do it? Killebrew in 1969.
By comparison, Ken Griffey Jr. accomplished the feat three times during his career and Barry Bonds did it four times. Both players backed up their bat with Gold Glove-caliber defense and there’s an argument that Buxton could be on his way to winning one of those as well.
This all assumes that Buxton’s knee holds up, but the Twins seem to have found a way to manage it while keeping his bat in the lineup. If that trend continues, Buxton could produce one of the greatest offensive seasons since the team moved to Minnesota in 1961.
