Byron Buxton is having one of the best offensive seasons of his career, but his defensive numbers may be starting to show some cracks. The metrics, paired with the organization’s looming prospect pipeline, have sparked an interesting question: Is it time for the Twins to consider moving Buxton to left field in 2026?

Defensive Numbers Tell a Story
Baseball Prospectus’s Deserved Runs Prevented (DRP) paints a clear month-to-month picture of Buxton’s defensive inconsistencies this season:

March/April: -0.1

May: 1.4

June: -1.1

July: -2.4

August: -1.4

September: -0.9

Even early this season, there were signs of defensive decline from Buxton, but they’ve gotten much more pronounced as the year has progressed. SABR’s latest Defensive Index (SDI) had him at -1.9 through games played on August 10, with only four qualified American League center fielders faring worse.

On top of that, Twins fans have seen it with their own eyes: balls falling in that he used to glide to with ease, or plays that once looked routine now appearing just out of reach.

Age and the Twins’ Timeline
Buxton turns 32 in December, and speed is often one of the first tools to fade as players move into their 30s. The Twins know this reality well. For Minnesota to maximize Buxton’s offensive value, especially during one of the most productive stretches of his career, it may soon be time to transition him out of center field.

The other complicating factor? Walker Jenkins. Minnesota’s top prospect has been thriving at Triple-A as a 20-year-old, and seems poised to debut sometime next season. His short-term future is clearly in center field, and the Twins may not want to block him there. In the minors, he’s played 443 innings in center field, and just 43 in right field this year. Emmanuel Rodriguez, another of the organization’s top prospects, has seen a lot of time in center and could be ready to impact the big-league roster next season. Injuries have impacted both top prospects, but obviously, Buxton has been no stranger to the injured list in his own right. 

Another factor the Twins must consider is Buxton’s long history of injuries. While he’s been healthier in recent seasons, his career has been defined as much by time on the injured list as by highlight-reel plays. A move to left field could help reduce the physical toll on his body, as corner spots typically require less ground to cover and fewer all-out sprints into the gaps or negotiations with the wall. Preserving Buxton’s health has always been a priority for the Twins, and a position change might be one way to keep his bat in the lineup more consistently while limiting the risk of those nagging injuries that have plagued him in the past.

The Twins also acquired two center field-capable players at the trade deadline, in Alan Roden and James Outman. Roden’s time was truncated by a season-ending injury, but his defense was one of his calling cards prior to Minnesota acquiring him. Outman has looked rough in center for the Twins and isn’t a long-term answer at the position, but if the team wants to move Buxton to a corner for the full season, Outman could stop the gap in center until Jenkins or Rodriguez is ready to matriculate.

History Repeats Itself
The Twins have a long tradition of elite center fielders, and nearly all of them eventually shifted to a corner spot. Kirby Puckett made the move. Torii Hunter made the move. Even Denard Span spent time away from center late in his career. Buxton could be the next in that line, and it doesn’t have to be viewed as a demotion. It’s a natural progression that helps extend careers.

At his peak, Buxton was the best defensive center fielder in baseball. Those skills may not be entirely gone, but the decline in the numbers suggests the Twins should be proactive. Shifting Buxton to left field would allow him to keep impacting games on both sides of the ball, just from a slightly different spot on the diamond.

Should the Twins move Buxton to a corner outfield spot when Jenkins makes his debut? Leave a comment and start the discussion.