![\"Minnesota](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/STP-Z-BUXTON-0404.jpg\")
Minnesota Twins’ Byron Buxton runs to first base during the third inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo\/Ellen Schmidt)<\/p>\nBefore he saw him step foot on a baseball field, Taylor Rogers remembers hearing about Byron Buxton.<\/p>\n
A group of draftees from the Twins\u2019 2012 class had gathered in Fort Myers, Fla., at the team\u2019s complex to go through their physicals and start their professional careers. Buxton, the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, was not yet there. The group congregated for a workout with some outfielders heading out to center for drills.<\/p>\n
Minnesota Twins’ Byron Buxton runs to first base during the third inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo\/Ellen Schmidt)<\/p>\n
They were quickly redirected by coaches to the corner outfield spots.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey said, \u2018Well that\u2019s Byron\u2019s,\u2019 \u201d Rogers remembered. \u201cAnd I was like \u2018Damn, this guy\u2019s got center field? He\u2019s not even here.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been almost 14 years since they were drafted. Buxton debuted on June 14, 2015. On Sunday, he hit another milestone, reaching 10 years of service time in the major leagues. He\u2019s still has center field for the Minnesota Twins.<\/p>\n
That was a point Rogers made sure to note during a pregame celebration of the two-time all-star\u2019s achievement on Sunday morning before the team took on the Tampa Bay Rays at Target Field.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t get 10 years in the big leagues without being really good,\u201d manager Derek Shelton said. \u201cBuck has grinded through it. He\u2019s dealt with some injuries, he\u2019s persevered \u2026 but I think the most important thing for me is just watching the maturation that he has, from a young player to being a superstar-type player, 10-year major league player.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reaching 10 years of service time is a major accomplishment for players. Less than 10 percent of those who have ever worn a major league uniform have done it, and Buxton is just the 14th player to reach the mark strictly with the Twins, joining players like Harmon Killebrew, Rod Carew, Kirby Puckett and former teammates Joe Mauer and Glen Perkins.<\/p>\n
Doing it all in a Twins jersey made the achievement even more special to the fiercely loyal center fielder.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was a goal I made when I first got up here,\u201d Buxton said. \u201cIt\u2019s still a goal. It\u2019s good to have that goal still intact. There\u2019s nothing like wearing this uniform across my body. All it says is \u2018Minnesota Twins.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n
Though he debuted in 2015 and has played in parts of 12 major league seasons, a player must be on the active roster or injured list for 172 days during the season to accrue a full year of service time.<\/p>\n
When he was younger and he saw Mauer reach the milestone, people used to tell him he was next. He was skeptical. As his career progressed and he dealt with a myriad of different injuries, he admitted he wasn\u2019t sure he would get to the round number.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you\u2019re 18, 19, 20, you don\u2019t believe half the stuff people tell you,\u201d Buxton said. \u201cThen when it finally gets here, it\u2019s that \u2018I told you so,\u2019 moment. It\u2019s surreal.\u201d<\/p>\n
To mark the occasion, Buxton\u2019s corner locker was adorned with balloons, including a \u201c1\u201d and a \u201c0.\u201d Rogers, Shelton, Justin Topa and executive chair Tom Pohlad spoke to the group before Buxton wrapped it up by saying a few words. Buxton\u2019s wife, Lindsey, sister, Keva, and two older sons, Brixton and Blaze, were on hand for the celebration, which lasted about 15 minutes.<\/p>\n
As part of the ceremony, he received a bottle of Ace of Spades champagne autographed by his teammates and an engraved Rolex watch from team ownership. He also received a custom painting, an idea which was spearheaded by Topa.<\/p>\n
This spring, Topa mentioned to starting pitcher Bailey Ober that nobody had really been talking much about Buxton\u2019s impending milestone. He wanted to come up with something unique that would commemorate Buxton\u2019s career. Topa reached out to local artist Ben Labuzzetta, who created a painting for Buxton that featured images from some of his major career moments, ranging from his debut to his first All-Star Game to last year\u2019s Home Run Derby and his cycle against the Pittsburgh Pirates.<\/p>\n
Topa worked with team photographer Brace Hemmelgarn and Labuzzetta on the concept and then the latter executed it, painting the images within the outline Buxton\u2019s No. 25. Buxton said he was particularly touched by the thought process behind the artwork.<\/p>\n
At the end of the presentation, as he began his speech to his teammates, Buxton lifted his shirt to wipe tears from his eyes, overcome with emotion.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just special,\u201d Buxton said. \u201cTo be able to have this jersey and to wear this jersey only for those 10 years and counting, that probably means more to me than anything else. It\u2019s hard to put into words.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Byron](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/STP-Z-Pirates-Twins-Baseball_231319198.jpg\")
Minnesota Twins’ Byron Buxton (25) acknowledges the crowd during a curtain call after hitting a solo home run for the cycle during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Saturday, July 12, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo\/Abbie Parr)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Before he saw him step foot on a baseball field, Taylor Rogers remembers hearing about Byron Buxton. A…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":665163,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2388],"tags":[5,19,822,60,3190,4,148],"class_list":{"0":"post-665162","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-minnesota-twins","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-major-league-baseball","10":"tag-minnesota","11":"tag-minnesota-twins","12":"tag-minnesotatwins","13":"tag-mlb","14":"tag-twins"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116353906379413013","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/665162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=665162"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/665162\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/665163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=665162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=665162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=665162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}