It's time to trade Byron Buxton

Byron Buxton's season ended today, with shoulder surgery and a trip to the 60 day DL.

As of early summer this year, he was having the kind of season we all hoped for. He was hitting well. He was mashing doubles(led the AL for a while) and even got out one grand slam. And he was his usual stellar self in CF.

But then, once again, the injuries came. And then they came again. And again. He's basically been out since the beginning of August, only showing up for some pinch running and defense lately.

In June I would have had Buxton on the top of the list for players to give contract extensions to. Now, I think that the smartest move is to trade him this offseason.

I don't think they should give him away by any means. But if you can find any kind of solid return of MLB ready pitching or good prospects, I make the move.

Players who are chronically injured early in their careers like Buxton is do not just suddenly stop being injury prone as they get older. The wear and tear piles up and takes its toll.

It's a simple minded solution to just tell him to stop playing then outfield the way he does. It doesn't work that way. Either way ends the same. If you were to somehow MAKE him not dive for balls or run into the walls chasing for balls, then you have already significantly decreased the value he brings on defense. But if you just let him do what he does, then he invariably will suffer major injuries again and miss large chunks of games. So there is no good solution there.

Buxton's speed has already been devalued by the Twins, because they never try to steal bases. At the plate, Buxton was having his best year. He hit a lot of doubles, but even still he had a ways to go to be a really major impact hitter. 2019 Buxton was a plus hitter, but if you subtract his elite defense he's, well, not ordinary, but he's far less valuable.

And he plays the outfield, which is the one area the Twins are the most loaded with big time prospects. Alex Kiriloff, Royce Lewis, and Brent Rooker should all be here within a couple years. You already have Max Kepler locked in for a while, and Eddie Rosario could also be a long term piece. Either can play CF. Yeah they aren't Buxton, but at least they are out there.

It's just not realistic anymore to just assume Buxton is a major part of this team in the long run.  If you keep him, you're faced with the same issues again next year. And with all the missed time and an offseason where he  probably doesn't get a ton of work in, you may be starting from scratch again with his hitting.

Now this stuff all probably does lower his trade value too. And again, I don't just give him away for scraps. But this offseason is going to require some bold moves from Falvine.