Byron Buxton injures himself making Ken Griffey Jr.-style catch
If you’re one of those baseball fans who only watches your favorite team during the regular season, Tuesday’s AL wild-card game between the Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees might have been your first experience this season with fantastic Twins youngster Byron Buxton.
Well, allow him to introduce himself, his name is Buck. And he does stuff like this:
Byron Buxton. Unreal. pic.twitter.com/foAh0gZyWy
— That Dude (@cjzer0) October 4, 2017
That’s a heckuva catch. Ken Griffey Jr.-like, in fact. It came in the second inning, on a potential extra-base hit from Todd Frazier of the Yankees. There was bad news afterward, however. Buxton left the game in the fourth inning and the Twins would later announce he hurt himself while making the catch.
Buxton left game with upper back tightness after slamming into wall
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) October 4, 2017
Buxton, the 23-year-old former No. 2 overall draft pick, truly had a breakout season in 2017. He’d struggled early in his MLB career, but it all came together for Buxton in the second half, as he was one of the most productive overall players in baseball.
His speed and defense were never the question, but his hitting came around and he helped lead the Twins to the wild-card game against the Yankees. That speed and defense, though! Buxton proved Tuesday night that he has the type of skills that should make him highlight-reel worthy in centerfield for years to come.
Buxton’s catch came at a crucial time, as the game was tied 3-3 at the start of the second inning. The Yankees would go on to pull ahead and win the contest 8-4. After the game, Buxton told Mike Berardino of The Pioneer Press that he was having trouble breathing after the catch:
Buxton on back: "It's still pretty hard for me to breathe right now. Probably going to follow up w/some tests (Wed) and see what’s going on"
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) October 4, 2017
While conducting postgame interviews, Buxton kept his upper back pressed up against the clubhouse wall. Clearly in some discomfort. #mntwins
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) October 4, 2017
If the wild-card game was your first taste of Buxton, you might want to carve out some time to watch Twins games in the future. Buxton is proving he’s worth it.
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Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
