Byron Buxton expects offseason hip surgery after sixth IL stint

What happened

Byron Buxton told Bobby Nightengale of the Minnesota Star-Tribune that he will likely require hip surgery this offseason — a disclosure that reframes what has been a situation without a public timetable. The three-time All-Star and former Platinum Glove center fielder has been out for the past nine days with a right hip impingement, per MLB Trade Rumors. This is his sixth IL stint related to the hip, and per the report, his third since early July alone.

Buxton told Nightengale that the hip pain has come and gone for "years," tracing the issue back to a 2021 IL placement for a hip strain. A series of injections managed the problem in recent seasons, but per the Star-Tribune report, that approach appears to have reached its limit. "It's probably had enough of the shots and treatments," Buxton said, in the only direct quote attributed to him in the report. He added that he plans to "keep fighting" while Minnesota still has a path, however narrow, to October.

That path requires a fairly specific sequence of events to materialize, but Buxton has not called it a season. Whether he returns before the final out is among the things the report leaves genuinely open.

Why it matters

The operational weight here is considerable. Buxton is Minnesota's most recognizable position player, and the Twins are already navigating a roster that has been reshuffled repeatedly in recent weeks. A week removed from reporting that Buxton was out indefinitely with the hip impingement, the picture has sharpened considerably — from "no timetable" to "probably needs surgery," which is a meaningful shift in how the front office and the fanbase should read the rest of this month.

The offseason surgery expectation also recontextualizes the club's planning horizon. If Buxton does not return this season, Minnesota will have managed his absence across the stretch run without him. If he does return, it will be with the understanding, per the report, that the hip will require a more permanent fix once the season ends. Either way, the injections-and-hope approach that has kept him on the field in recent seasons appears to be closing.

There is also the matter of what this means structurally. The Twins have been active on the roster front in early September — outfielder Kyler Fedko was designated for assignment to open a 40-man spot, and Woo-Suk Go elected free agency after going unclaimed on waivers following his own designation, which created room for Walker Jenkins. The September roster expansion, which allows clubs to carry 28 players through the end of the regular season under general league rules, gives Minnesota some flexibility to fill the outfield gap, but it does not replace what Buxton provides when healthy.

Where the club stands

The Twins are 67-74 (.475), third in the AL Central, 7 games back of the division lead, and on a two-game losing streak. The Wild Card picture is only marginally more hospitable: Minnesota ranks seventh in the American League Wild Card standings, sitting 4.5 games relative to the cut line. Per MLB Trade Rumors, the Twins are six and a half games back in the AL Central and three and a half games behind Cleveland for the final Wild Card spot — figures that, taken together, describe a club that is alive in the technical sense while requiring considerable help to actually get there.

The upcoming schedule opens with three games at the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field. Zebby Matthews is the probable starter Friday against Erick Fedde, Taj Bradley takes the ball Saturday opposite Anthony Kay, and Bailey Ober is lined up for Sunday against a starter listed as TBD. A series against Chicago is, in theory, the kind of schedule that allows a team to arrest a skid. Whether Minnesota can take advantage of it without Buxton — and with the rotation still working its way back to full strength — is the operational question hanging over the next few days.

Is Joe Ryan available for this series?

Not yet, per recent reporting. Joe Ryan, working back from a glute strain, made a rehab start with Triple-A St. Paul earlier this week and has been described as nearing a return to the rotation, potentially during an upcoming road trip. He is not listed as a probable starter for any of the three games in Chicago this weekend. His return, when it comes, would give the Twins rotation a meaningful addition at a moment when the club needs every win it can find.

The rotation situation and the Buxton situation are, in that sense, running on parallel tracks: both are injury recoveries with uncertain timelines, both matter enormously to Minnesota's chances, and neither has resolved cleanly as September opens.

What we don't know yet

The report does not specify a timeline for Buxton's potential return this season, and Buxton himself has not indicated he is done for the year. The nature of the procedure he reportedly expects — what it would involve, how long recovery might take, or when it would be scheduled — is not detailed in the Star-Tribune report. What the report establishes is the expectation, in Buxton's own words, that surgery is likely coming. The when and the how remain unaddressed.

It is also worth noting that the report reflects Buxton speaking to a reporter, not a club announcement. The Twins organization has not, per the available material, issued any statement about his status or his offseason plans. A player's own assessment of his medical situation and a club's position are not always the same document, and only one of those exists here.

What to watch

The most immediate question is whether Buxton makes any attempt to return before the end of the regular season. He said he plans to keep fighting while playoff hope exists, and the Twins are not mathematically eliminated — but 4.5 games out of a Wild Card spot with the calendar turning to September is a slim margin, and it will shrink or disappear quickly depending on how this weekend goes in Chicago.

The broader question is what the offseason surgery expectation means for Minnesota's winter planning. Buxton's availability for the start of next spring training, the nature of any recovery timeline, and what the club does around him in the meantime are all questions that will come into sharper focus once the season ends — and once, presumably, the procedure he reportedly expects actually takes place.

For now, the Twins are playing out a September with faint Wild Card arithmetic, a rotation that is still reassembling itself, and their best outfielder watching from the IL and telling reporters that his hip has probably had enough of the conservative approach. Six IL stints and a series of injections later, it appears he may be right.