Minneapolis – Everything was lined up for Jhoan Duran to get the save and end the night easily. He’d face the Chicago White Sox’s 6-7-8 hitters with a lead that the Minnesota Twins had just been extended to 4-1 thanks to Trevor Larnach’s home run.
However, things immediately got shaky for Minnesota’s closer. Duran had what looked to be a routine ground out turn into a single for Lenyn Sosa, then he walked the next two batters to get the bases loaded.
Fortunately, luck began to turn his way when Joshua Palacios came to the plate.
“I tried to throw the ball for a strike,” Duran said postgame, explaining his approach to the Palacios at-bat. “I tried to attack the zone, you know?”
Duran’s combative change worked. He struck out Palacios to get the first out, then Nick Maton hit a groundout to Edouard Julien for the second out. However, he sacrificed a run at home to make it 4-2. That brought left fielder Andrew Benintendi to the plate with two runners in scoring position, and a six-pitch battle ensued.
Duran threw four balls over 100 MPH that Benintendi either fouled off or were called strikes. However, on the last ball, Benintendi made contact that drew everyone’s attention to center field and Byron Buxton. At first, Duran didn’t believe Buxton had a chance at the ball.
What happened next blew everyone’s mind.
“I’ve got a chance at everything, I’ve just got to run,” Buxton said about his odds of securing the game-ending catch. “I knew he hit it good. Just not many fans here, so you can hear how loud it comes off the bat. I knew off the jump I had to get on my horses.”
Benintendi’s fly ball to right-center field had a 101.2 MPH exit velocity, and Buxton had just under 100 feet to run and make the catch. Twins fans and Buxton’s teammates have learned that the Twins can always count on him in these moments.
Still, even when Buxton makes a miracle catch, they have a sense of disbelief.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Duran said. “That’s crazy.”
“It’s weird because normally I’m one making plays like that,” said DaShawn Keirsey Jr., who entered the game to play right field in the ninth. “I can’t say I’ve ever really been in the outfield with guys who are that good. It was slow-mo. As I’m running, I see him and he just jumps in the air and it’s like slow motion. It was one of the most incredible catches I’ve ever seen.”
“Ah, he looked like Superman out there,” said Twins rookie Luke Keaschall. “He was just flying through the air, and when it went up, I was like, ‘Ah, good, Buck’s out there, we’re going to catch it.’”
“It was crazy,” said second baseman Julien, who made a few highlight plays himself Tuesday night. “I saw the ball go in the air, I knew he hit it hard. In my head, I saw him sprinting, and there was no doubt in my mind he was going to catch it.”
Buxton’s game-ending catch to secure the 4-2 win for the Twins, their first win to open a series all season. It gave the Twins a jolt of energy they hadn’t felt in almost a week. Their last win was a walk-off win at home against the Mets.
Buxton was close but still far enough to crash into the right-center field wall. Everything fell into place once he calculated that he had enough distance to make the landing.
“I took a glance at the wall, and I know I had a good bit of space if I needed to dive,” Buxton said. “That’s all I need to feel safe to be able to do something like that now. Normally, I wouldn’t care. I’d go straight Superman.”
“Well, I’ve learned to almost think he’s going to catch all of them,” said Twins manager Rocco Baldelli. “He’s even caught some where I’m like, probably not much of a chance on this ball.
“The athleticism, the range, the body control, to make that play – all things we’ve seen from him before,” he added. “And stuff that you don’t see every day at the baseball field.”
Buxton’s catch manifested a message he shared with his pitchers over the last week when he told them he has their backs on both sides of the ball. The words can sometimes seem like a small gesture, but seeing them turn into action with his catch gives them a different meaning.
“He told me the past day, like later, ‘Hey, I got you,’” said Duran. “I know what it means, but now I know.”
“Yeah, it’s huge,” said Bailey Ober, who started for the Twins against the White Sox. “It gives you a little bit more comfortability that you can attack these guys and maybe go up in the zone a little bit more, and he’s just going to be able to run stuff down. Like you said, when [Buxton is] healthy, he’s the best out there. He’s unbelievable to watch. The catches he’s made in his career are second to none.”
“I take a lot of pride in telling our pitchers I’ve got their back, and I take it to heart,” Buxton said. “It ain’t just them on the pitcher’s mound when I’m out there in center. I feel like we’re all out there on that pitcher’s mound with them. You don’t want their ERA to be high, you want them to have good numbers. Just making sure I’ve got their back and putting them in good positions for us to be better throughout the season.”
The Twins take on the White Sox again tomorrow for the second of three games. David Festa will get the start, and Twins manager Rocco Baldelli announced postgame that Chris Paddack would have the mound in Thursday’s game. Festa and Paddack will take the mound knowing that if Buxton can get to a fly ball, he’ll catch it. He always has their backs.
