Twins' Byron Buxton Placed on 10-Day IL Because of Hip Injury

Minnesota Twins outfielder Byron Buxton was placed on the 10-day injured list with a grade two hip strain, the team announced Friday. 

Trevor Larnach has been recalled to fill Buxton's roster spot. 

The 27-year-old was off to an MVP-caliber season through 24 games, slashing .370/.408/.772 with nine home runs, 17 RBI, five stolen bases and enough diving catches in center field to already fill up his 2021 highlight reel. 

Minnesota (11-19) entered Friday on a three-game losing streak and fourth in the American League Central. 

Larnach would make his MLB debut if he gets into the lineup.

The 24-year-old is MLB Pipeline's No. 3-ranked prospect in the Twins organization and its No. 69 overall prospect. Scouts believe in Larnach's ability to crush the ball, rating him a 55 hit, 55 power and 55 overall on a scale of 20-80. 

Per Pipeline: 

"The Twins love his swing and he controls the strike zone extremely well, with the chance to eventually be a plus hitter from the left side. The power came after a swing adjustment and he's shown the ability to drive the ball to all parts of the ballpark as he continues to work on turning on inside pitches to his pull side. "

"While Larnach doesn’t run particularly well, he's an adequate defender with an above-average arm who has shown the ability to play right field. It's that left-handed bat, though, that will get him to the big leagues and allow him to be the kind of run producer teams like to have in their outfield corners."

Despite the potential Larnach brings with him to the bigs, it's nearly impossible to expect the rookie alone to replace Buxton. As the Twins look to get their season back on track, expect manager Rocco Baldelli to rely on Jake Cave, Max Kepler, Kyle Garlick and Willians Astudillo in the field alongside Larnach.