Two of the game’s very best prospects were shut down this week, and both happen to be Minnesota Twins.
Outfielder Byron Buxton, the game’s consensus No. 1 prospect, is out with a strained left shoulder suffered in the Arizona Fall League, according to MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger. Power-hitting third baseman Miguel Sano has a strained UCL in his right elbow and was sent home from the Dominican Winter League.
Sano’s injury is the one worth worrying about, since that’s the Tommy John ligament. However, Dr. James Andrews examined him and determined that surgery wasn’t necessary.
Buxton, 19, was hitting .212/.288/.404 in 52 at-bats in the AFL after batting .334/.424/.520 with 55 steals for two A-ball teams last season. Sano, 20, had played in just two games in his native Dominican Republic, going 1-for-5 with four walks. He hit .280/.382/.620 with 35 homers in 439 at-bats between Single-A Fort Myers and Double-A New Britain last season.
Neither Buxton nor Sano will have any real chance of breaking camp with the Twins next season, but they could both debut over the summer if they continue tearing up minor league pitching.
