MILWAUKEE – A manager can appreciate two highly competitive athletes trying to make a play, even if the result of their efforts was painful – literally – for the Minnesota Twins.
When infielder Carlos Correa and outfielder Byron Buxton both made a play on a pop fly in Thursday’s game in Baltimore, it showed their competitiveness and some of the grit that has led the team to double digits in consecutive wins. It also landed Correa on the shelf.
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli announced prior to Friday’s visit to the closed-roof home of the Brewers that Correa was headed to the seven-day concussion injured list as a result of his collision with Buxton.
“Ultimately, some of the tests that he went through today went fine, and some didn’t. And as soon as something doesn’t, that’s it,” Baldelli said of Correa, whose season batting average dropped to .236 before he left the game on Thursday. “We get him, basically, into the recovery phase as opposed to us testing him and trying to see if he can play. We put the playing aside and we just get him back to full strength.”
The bad news, which came in the midst of one of the longest winning streaks in Twins franchise history, came as a result of two players drifting into a kind of no man’s land between the infield and shallow outfield to make a play on a fly ball, which Buxton ultimately caught. Buxton, who also went into the concussion protocol after later leaving the game, did not go on the injured list, but he was not in Friday’s starting lineup.
“The play looked innocent, because I’m sure both of them would say, ‘Oh yeah, I could’ve made the play, no problem,’” Baldelli said. “It was just in that one small area on the field where both guys not only thought the other one was going to make the play but they were just going a little too far into the other guy’s space.”
The head injury comes after a 2024 season when Correa was limited to 86 games due to a nagging left foot ailment.
Big league debut for Fitzgerald
Utility infielder Ryan Fitzgerald had a tough first game of a doubleheader this week for the St. Paul Saints, then he found out he was headed to the Twins for his major league debut. Then his flight from Des Moines, Iowa to Milwaukee was cancelled, meaning he had to make the five-hour drive to the Brewers’ ballpark.
After a career spent playing minor league ball in the U.S. and Dominican Republic, the Chicagoland native who turns 31 next month would likely have walked the 350-plus miles for this opportunity. Primarily a shortstop who began his pro career with the Gary (Indiana) Railcats, Fitzgerald joked that he’d be willing to don catchers’ gear if it meant getting his first chance in the majors.
“Playing (independent) ball back in 2017, making 800 bucks a month, driving more than an hour to the ballpark, living at home, having this opportunity, I’m just super grateful,” he said. Fitzgerald added, with his debut happening so close to his hometown of Burr Ridge, Illinois, he had his parents, two brothers and assorted others headed to Milwaukee for the game.
Baldelli said the addition of Fitzgerald, who had hit .328 for the Saints with four home runs, gives the Twins some important options with Correa temporarily unavailable.
“We brought a guy that’s versatile and we brought a guy that can play in the middle of the infield, which means Willi Castro can go anywhere at that point,” the manager said.
Asked for a self-scouting report regarding what Twins fans can expect from him, Fitzgerald flashed a grin and flipped his impressive black, curly mullet.
“Good hair. That’s number one,” he said.
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