Twins center fielder Byron Buxton left the clubhouse early today to get a magnetic resonance imaging exam.
On pace for a possible career high in games this season — he played 140 in 2017 — Buxton left Saturday night’s 9-3 loss to Washington after the sixth inning at Target Field with left-side soreness. An all-star for the second time, he hit two doubles in the American League’s 7-6 loss, decided with a home run contest, this month.
Buxton, 31, was on the seven-day concussion IL in mid-May after colliding with teammate Carlos Correa while chasing a fly ball. He has otherwise been healthy and leads the team in WAR (3.9), home runs (23), RBIs (59), doubles (14) and triples (4).
The Twins are expecting an update sometime during Sunday afternoon’s rubber game against the Nationals.
Hometown clinician
Nationals outfielder Alex Call, who went 2 for 4 in Washington’s victory on Saturday, was born in Burnsville but grew up in River Falls, Wis., where he attended high school.
Asked which he considers his home, Call said, “I take the best of Minnesota and the best of Wisconsin. It’s a really special area. I’m a Midwest kid. The River Falls community, that’s where I’m from. It shaped me into who I am.”
Saturday marked his second game at Target Field.
“It’s fun to come back and play,” said Call, who entered Saturday’s game as a pinch-hitter after center fielder Jacob Young hurt a finger trying to bunt. It was the second inning, and he inherited an 0-2 count, but singled to drive in the game’s first run. In the seventh, he hit a solo home run to give his team a 6-2 lead.
“It’s still really special because it’s every other year,” he said. “A lot of fun this weekend.”
Before Friday night’s game, Call — with the help of his high school coach Ryan Bishop and the MLB Players Trust — held a baseball clinic in River Falls.
“It all lined up perfectly with the off day the day before,” Call said. “I was able to show up and had an amazing time with the kids, (and) got in some good instruction. It was just really special; I was in all those kids’ shoes, going to camps like that. Just really important to give back and have fun and encourage the next generation.”
Briefly
Catcher Ryan Jeffers and his wife, Lexi, welcomed a healthy baby boy on Saturday.
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