Twins’ Byron Buxton tests right hip in hopes of returning to roster this week

SAN DIEGO – Green Day and Journey are gone, so Byron Buxton was back in the outfield Tuesday at Target Field, testing his right hip in hopes of returning to the Twins’ roster when they return home to face the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.

“Today was the first day we had a chance to get him on the ground” because of the huge stages that occupied the ballpark for concerts while the Twins were in San Diego and in Texas, said Nick Paparesta, the Twins’ head athletic trainer. “He’s been hitting in the cage, throwing, doing outfield work. Things are going well, progressing along nicely.”

Buxton, who came out of the Twins’ game Aug. 12 with a sore hip that resulted from, doctors believe, scar tissue that built up after a similar injury in 2022, is eligible to be activated Friday.

“I would never rule that out,” Paparesta said. “The off day on Thursday gives us a chance to reconvene. I get a chance to talk to him and see face-to-face how things are going. I wouldn’t rule that out.”

Progress is coming more slowly for Carlos Correa, who on Friday will mark six weeks since a case of plantar fasciitis in his right foot knocked him out of action.

Correa also ran Tuesday at Target Field, Paparesta said, and said his foot felt better than it did Sunday.

“We’re just kind of in a pain-management situation with Carlos, trying to make sure that we can keep him comfortable, see how each day goes,” Paparesta said. “He’s still having some discomfort. As cliché as it sounds, it’s truly day-to-day on how he’s going to feel and what we can do with him.”

Still, the trainer said, Correa has been hitting and fielding to stay as sharp as possible without putting too much pressure on his sore right foot.

Meanwhile, outfielder/first baseman Alex Kirilloff’s sore lower back had improved enough that the Twins planned to send him on a rehabilitation assignment this week. But Kirilloff suffered a sprained ankle last week while doing a change-of-direction drill, delaying that assignment.

“He’s done well coming back from that, so we’re hoping to get him out [on a rehab] this weekend,” Paparesta said. “He’s been able to swing. He’s going to get on the bases in the next couple of days, and if that goes well, he’ll be ready to move along.”

Brooks Lee is throwing pain-free, Paparesta said, and now can hit from both sides of the plate as his strained right shoulder has healed. Lee will work out with the Class AAA St. Paul Saints on Thursday, and the Twins will figure out his timeline after that.

And lefthanded reliever Kody Funderburk’s right oblique has healed enough for him to begin a throwing program. He will pitch off a mound for the first time in a month this weekend, with a rehab assignment the likely next step.

When Willi Castro hit a sharp ground ball toward second baseman Xander Bogaerts during the second inning Monday night, the Twins’ scoring chances appeared gone. The bases were loaded with one out, but Castro’s grounder gave the San Diego Padres an opportunity to turn a double play.

Austin Martin prevented it.

The rookie outfielder broke toward second when the ball was hit and neared Bogaerts as he fielded the ball. The Padres infielder, seeing Martin nearby, decided to speed up the play by tagging Martin out and flipping the ball to first base.

But Martin anticipated the play and stopped in the base path, then backpedaled toward first. Now committed, Bogaerts chased Martin and tagged him — too late to get Castro at first base. Christian Vázquez scored on the play, a run that wouldn’t have happened otherwise.

“Exceptional baserunning,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “These are the things that you talk about many times in spring training — you sit down and discuss these scenarios. Baserunning, it’s more of a mental exercise than a physical one. You have to know that something might happen and play it out in your head, then recognize it quickly.”

Not bad for a rookie, Baldelli said.

“You can’t do it better than that. That’s the difference between winning a game sometimes and losing,” he said. “It was actually the way you would draw it up.”

Baldelli was less impressed with Martin when told that the rookie is “naturally ambidextrous,” able to write, throw and perform many other function with both hands.

“He’s an ambidextrous player who decided not to bat lefthanded? What?” Baldelli said in mock horror. “You can quote me on that.”

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre jumped to a 4-0 lead in the first inning with the help of a home run and fielding error, and the RailRiders never trailed in defeating the St. Paul Saints 9-4 Tuesday night at CHS Field. DaShawn Keirsey Jr. hit a three-run homer for the Saints.