A few weeks ago, we started seeing national publications tackling the question of just how good Byron Buxton is, with the New York Times playing off a Carlos Correa quote with a grabby headline, "He's the best player in the world."
Byron Buxton's slump is a reminder that it's all about sample size
Buxton's 0-for-21 skid has dropped his average to .211.
May 25, 2022 at 4:14PM
It was just 10 days ago that Buxton, still sporting an OPS over 1.000, was revealed to be on a 100-game plan with the Twins. Maybe he would play more than that this year, but the minimum threshold was a nod to an attempt to keep Buxton healthy.
And it was nine days ago when Buxton last got a hit — a fifth-inning single on May 16 in a win over Oakland that drove in Royce Lewis (yes, back when he was still here).
Since then, Buxton has amassed 21 official at bats without a hit.
You might not have particularly noticed because the Twins have kept right on winning through Buxton's slump, going 5-0 in his five hitless games (during which Buxton has scored four runs, driven in one run and continued to play dazzling defense, so it's not as if he's contributing nothing).
But you will certainly notice if you spend any amount of time in the comments sections of Star Tribune Twins stories, or on social media, or if you happen to have access to my email in box (which, I hope, you do not).
Buxton's detractors are very aware that his batting average is all the way down to .211, that his OPS has taken a dive down to .850 and that the "best player in the world" conversation has been put on pause. They could also tell you that he's had two games off since his last hit.
It comes with the territory when dealing with the subject of Buxton, I suppose: Live and die by the small sample size.
His too-frequent injuries in recent years often have left his supporters — of whom there are many because, for goodness sakes, he's an incredible talent — extrapolating his limited work. Project that over a full season, and just imagine ...
But his limited plate appearances also mean that just as surely as a hot stretch can inflate his numbers, a cold streak like this one can send him tumbling toward the Mendoza Line.
Buxton is almost certainly too good to stay there for long. Just as long as he stays healthy.
When he was hired after the disastrous 2016 season to reshape the Twins, Derek Falvey brought a reputation for identifying and developing pitching talent. It took a while, but the pipeline we were promised is now materializing.
