Story by
Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
Byron Buxton avoids serious injury as Twins win home opener
- Story byPioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn.
- Byron Buxton avoids serious injury as Twins win home opener
Kevin Kelly's pitch kept creeping further and further in until it collided with Byron Buxton 's right forearm. The Twins' center fielder immediately dropped his bat, hopped up and down and walked straight off the field and into the tunnel leading to the clubhouse.
It was a painful way to start what would become a seven-run rally. By the time it was over, the Twins had broken open the game — an eventual 10-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays in their home opener at Target Field — and had already received some positive news on Buxton, who received a negative X-ray.
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"It's an arm," Buxton said. "It ain't broke, so I'm good."
As part of that rally, James Outman entered for Buxton off the bench and immediately stole a base, which manager Derek Shelton made a point to mention. Outman came around to score when designated hitter Josh Bell drove in his second run of the game, giving the Twins (3-4) their first lead of the day.
"First pitch, he steals, gets a huge jump and it changed the whole momentum of the inning," Shelton said.
The Twins followed that up by working a pair of bases-loaded walks before Tristan Gray , up for the third time on Friday with the bases loaded, finally made his former team pay.
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Gray, whose sacrifice fly tied the game up as part of a three-run fourth inning, clubbed a grand slam that just cleared the wall in right field. He now has driven in a team-leading eight runs.
"It was really just a relief," Gray said. "I was a little upset about the second time, not getting the job done. So just staying with it and trusting that all of our preparation was going to come through. Thankfully it did."
It was an eventful home opener for the Twins, who began the game almost an hour late because of a power outage that affected parts of downtown Minneapolis. The power went out at 1:51 p.m. with the game originally scheduled to start at 3:10 p.m. It eventually began at 4:07 p.m.
Starting pitcher Bailey Ober was in the training room, finishing up there. Outman was sitting in the clubhouse. Buxton was in the middle of enjoying a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in the kitchen with a group of others.
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"We just kind of stared and looked at each other," Buxton said. "It was quite funny."
As the delay stretched on, some players played cards. Others played ping pong in the clubhouse. Ober did his best to move around and stay loose so he would be ready when he got word it was time to go.
The cause, per an Xcel Energy statement, was an "equipment failure along the main power line that serves the stadium." The delayed start meant the Twins and Rays (2-5) played the end of the game through steady rain.
"To be able to stick with us through Opening Day, it means a lot," Buxton said. "I don't think the tickets were scanning so they stood out there in the rain (pregame). There is a lot that goes into it than just them being in the stands. … It did not go unnoticed."
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Those fans watched the Twins fall behind early as Ober was tagged for a pair of runs in the first inning and one more in the fourth before his departure. But they mounted their first rally in the fourth to tie things up before the big one in the seventh. In both, the Twins took advantage of some poor infield defense from the Rays, who committed three errors in the game, on their way to victory.
"We believe in each other in here," Bell said. "We believe in our lineup, and if our starter gives up three runs, we know we're in a good place."
