Injuries & Moves: Buxton starts rehab with St. Paul

May 16th, 2024

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10-DAY/15-DAY INJURED LIST

CF (right knee inflammation)
Expected return: Mid-May
Buxton played seven innings in center field and went 0-for-3 with a groundout and two strikeouts as he began a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul on May 15. He was expected to play again at DH on May 16 before a likely decision to activate him for the coming weekend's series in Cleveland. Buxton had tested his right knee on the field on May 14 with some fly-ball work and hitting alongside teammates in pregame warmups, which cleared him for the rehab assignment.

"Pretty much [the last step is] just work out with the team," Buxton said on May 14. "[The team] was on the road the last few days and then off yesterday. Just not being able to get out there with them and do everything, so to get out there and do everything is probably the last step."

Buxton was not expected to need much more than the minimum 10 days on the IL for knee inflammation that flared up on a stolen-base attempt on May 1 in Chicago, which led to his placement on the IL on May 3. (Last updated: May 16)

OF (low back strain, No. 4 on Twins Top Prospects list)
Expected return:
TBD
Gonzalez hasn't played for High-A Cedar Rapids since May 1 due to the low back strain that ultimately sent him to the Minor League IL on May 8. The most significant piece of the return in the offseason Jorge Polanco trade with Seattle, Gonzalez "does not appear too close to returning," as reported by The Gazette in Cedar Rapids on May 15. (Last updated: May 15)

3B (severe right quad strain)
Expected return: No sooner than June
Lewis hit on the field and began a more aggressive week of running on May 14, as part of which he's expected to work on change-of-direction then baserunning. Once he gets into the baserunning element later in the week, the Twins should have a better sense of the timeline on a rehab assignment, head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta said. Because of the time Lewis has been down, it's likely that the baserunning and rehab timelines will be on the lengthier side, according to Paparesta. Once Lewis is through his baserunning progressions, he'll be medically cleared to play.

"Once we get on the bases, we’re going to try to keep it as hectic and crazy and unknown for him as possible, try to do it on back-to-back days just like you would play in the Minor Leagues on a rehab assignment," Paparesta said.

Lewis was expected to need at least a month of pure recovery following what was described as a "severe" right quad strain sustained while running the bases in the Twins' Opening Day victory over the Royals on March 28. He will not require surgery but did receive a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection. (Last updated: May 14)

RHP (right shoulder tendinitis)
Expected return: TBD
The MRI on Stewart's right shoulder revealed no structural issues and only some inflammation to the rotator cuff, he said. He received a platelet-rich plasma injection in the shoulder on May 13 and should be throwing "in the short term," according to head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta.

"It does not change the timeline that we have laid out for his progression," Paparesta said. "We have to get his arm strength where it needs to be. We have to get his range of motion where it needs to be."

The Twins made a late move to send Stewart to the IL just before first pitch of their May 3 game against the Red Sox after he came out of playing catch continuing to feel a pinch in his shoulder, to the point where he felt the need to take time away. He'd originally pitched through the issue that originally presented during his April 25 outing against the White Sox, but it wasn't resolving. (Last updated: May 14)

RHP (left patellar tendinitis)
Expected return:
TBD
Another MRI of Topa's left knee revealed a 25 percent torn left patellar tendon after soreness again flared up during his fourth rehab outing with Triple-A St. Paul on May 5. He said he'd felt as good as he had in a long time during his May 3 outing but did not see that continue with another appearance. As of May 14, he was a week into a two-week immobilization of the knee -- stabilized in a brace -- and on crutches, after which he won't be throwing for six weeks. After a second opinion from a doctor, Topa received a platelet-rich plasma injection in the knee, with the hope it'll allow him to avoid surgery.

"The injection was the best option to get back as fast as possible," Topa said. "That's been my goal from day one, is to get this done and over with and pitch this year and make an impact this year. Unfortunately, there's a sense of a waste of six weeks after the first go-round. This time we're on the right track."

Topa began the season on the IL due to soreness and inflammation related to left knee tendinitis that had lingered throughout last season. It flared up during Spring Training, leading to him opting for rest to get out ahead of the issue this year. (Last updated: May 14)

OF (left hamstring strain, No. 1 on Twins Top Prospects list)
Expected return:
TBD
Jenkins hasn't played since he exited the season opener for Single-A Fort Myers with the hamstring strain on April 5 following a collision with the outfield wall while making a catch. The Twins did not have any more specifics on Jenkins' recovery as of further updates on April 23 and May 3. (Last updated: May 3)

INF (back strain, No. 2 on Twins Top Prospects list)
Expected return: Possibly June
Lee sustained a herniated disk in his back ahead of a Spring Training game on March 21 and has been sidelined with the issue since then. With the Twins following an established program for a return-to-play protocol from disk herniation, the initial expectation was that Lee could perhaps miss somewhere around two months, and as of the Twins' April 23 update, Lee had not yet started building back into baseball, which was expected to be done deliberately. The Twins did not have a further update on May 3.

"With this, you’ve just got to kind of get it taken care of on the front end and then make sure when you’re building him up you’re building him up pretty slowly," president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said. (Last updated: May 3)

60-DAY INJURED LIST

RHP (right scapula stress fracture)
Expected return:
May
Winder had his rehab assignment transferred to Triple-A St. Paul on May 7, and as of May 14, the plan was for him to throw multiple innings twice a week. He began the rehab assignment with Single-A Fort Myers on April 30 as the starting pitcher against Bradenton and made two appearances, striking out eight in 3 2/3 innings while allowing four earned runs. Because Winder missed all of Spring Training, the Twins took it slowly with his progression, treating his recovery more like a Spring Training buildup.

He was tracking behind due to a stress fracture he sustained in his right shoulder area last fall, which he said was due to his workload throughout the 2023 season. After undergoing imaging in October, Winder was prescribed rest to allow the fracture to heal, after which he started to throw in January. (Last updated: May 14)

RHP (right teres major strain)
Expected return:
No sooner than June
Weiss was throwing from 75 feet as of May 14, with the hope that he'll be off a mound in "a few more weeks," according to head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta.

Weiss was moved to the 60-day IL on April 9. He suffered a strain to the teres major in the right rotator cuff in late February and did not appear in any Spring Training games. (Last updated: May 14)

RHP (right elbow strain)
Expected return: Not this season
Duarte will undergo right elbow surgery on May 8, performed by Dr. Keith Meister in Dallas. He had Tommy John surgery on his right arm 10 years ago. This surgery will either be a total replacement of the graft in his elbow or the installation of a brace to support the current structure.

According to head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta, Meister said he wouldn’t know which until he began the procedure. Either way, Duarte is facing a long recovery. He was transferred to the 60-day IL on April 22. (Last updated: April 22)

RHP (right elbow strain)
Expected return:
Not this season
DeSclafani underwent season-ending flexor tendon repair surgery with Dr. Keith Meister on March 29. He attempted two ramp-ups in Spring Training but had both halted by elbow soreness, at which point he and the Twins sought a consultation with Meister.

There was no UCL involvement, meaning DeSclafani did not need Tommy John surgery, but the flexor tendon surgery also involves a 13-month recovery timeline. (Last updated: March 30)