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The Minnesota Twins knew they were rolling the dice by hitching their fortunes to Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa, two oft-injured stars who are among baseball's best at their respective positions when healthy.
Thursday, the worst-case scenario was realized when the two teammates collided in the field in a game against the Baltimore Orioles.
A scary scene here at Camden Yards.
— Jacob Calvin Meyer (@jcalvinmeyer) May 15, 2025
Twins CF Byron Buxton and SS Carlos Correa collided on a popup in the outfield. As Buxton caught the ball, it appeared as if their heads banged off one another.
?: MASN pic.twitter.com/jahxk7vfXK
The scary scene at Camden Yards resulted in Correa, a three-time All-Star shortstop, being removed from the game after colliding in the outfield with Buxton, who caught the pop-up in center field.
With Chris Paddack on the mound and Cedric Mullins at the plate, Correa drifted out and Buxton drifted in to catch the lazy fly ball. It appeared that Correa backed off at the last second, but Buxton's momentum carried him into his 30-year-old teammate's.
Twins center fielder Byron Buxton is now out of the game as well. https://t.co/xcWWlpWxme
— Jake Rill (@JakeDRill) May 15, 2025
Correa sprawled out on the grass after the collision, while Buxton was able to remain in the game until leaving in the fourth inning.
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Both Correa and Buxton are in concussion protocol, Twins bench coach Jayce Tingler told reporters after the game.
Jayce Tingler said on #MNTwins postgame show that being in #MLB's concussion protocol DOES NOT mean Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa indeed have concussions. It simply means both are being evaluated for the possibility. More information on Friday.
— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) May 15, 2025
Correa, an All-Star last year, was off to a slow start in 2025. He entered Thursday's game with a .238/.276/.333 slash line. His .609 OPS was 30 percent below league average, and only 10 of his 35 hits this season have gone for extra bases.
Last season, Correa played only 86 games due to injuries but slashed .310/.388/.517 when healthy (151 OPS+).
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Buxton, meanwhile, has been as good as the Twins could hope for. In 40 games, he was slashing .258/.310/.503 while providing stellar defense in center field and speed on the basepaths. He's 8 for 8 in stolen base attempts this season.
More importantly, Buxton has managed to avoid the injured list. Myriad ailments have limited him over the years; in 2024 he played just 103 games while making separate IL visits for inflammation in his right hip and right knee.
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Buxton has already homered for the 10th time this season in Thursday's game. The Twins led 3-0 at the moment of impact between Buxton and Correa.
Buxton, 31, is a 2022 All-Star and a 2017 American League Gold Glove Award winner. He's in the fourth year of a seven-year, $100 million contract extension signed in Nov. 2021.
The Twins padded Buxton's contract with various performance bonuses based on plate appearances and awards. Now they might consider padding his jersey with bubble wrap.
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About the writer
J.P. Hoornstra writes and edits Major League Baseball content. A veteran of 20 years of sports coverage for daily newspapers ... Read more