Souhan: We’re getting another glimpse of All-Star caliber Twins center fielder Byron Buxton

The Buck Truck is running amok, and could one-up Puck.

Two remarkable events occurred on Thursday in Cincinnati. Byron Buxton played in a day game following a night game, and he hit home runs in his first two at-bats in the Twins’ slump-busting 12-5 victory over the Reds.

Buxton has a chance to become the first Twins player ever to produce 30 home runs and 30 steals in one season. Not even Kirby Puckett managed that. The closest Puckett came was in 1986, when he produced 31 homers and 20 steals. That was his only 30-homer season, and he never had more than 21 steals.

Through 74 games this season, Buxton has 15 home runs and 12 steals. His career-high for steals was 29 in 2017. Because of injuries that limited his playing time and ability to run without fear of injury, his second-highest season total for steals is 14, in 2019.

Last year, when Buxton recorded his most games played since 2017 with 102, he produced 18 homers and just seven steals.

Buxton is, at the moment, the kind of player the Twins thought they were getting when they chose him with the second pick in 2012 and signed him to a lucrative contract extension before the 2022 season.

His spectacular performances at the plate, on the bases and in the field raise three questions:

Could he force himself into the MVP conversation?

The Yankees’ Aaron Judge is the favorite. Cal Raleigh led the American League in homers entering Thursday. But Cleveland’s Jose Ramirez is the only contender for the award who is as well-rounded as Buxton, and Buxton is a superior defender at a premier position.

If Buxton reaches 30-30 and the Twins contend, Buxton will be able to make an intriguing case.

Can he push himself on the bases?

When Buxton is healthy, home runs just happen, and he never has a reason not to hit home runs.

He has a reason not to steal bases — to keep his legs fresh and his bat in the lineup. He’ll have to steal bases at a high rate the rest of the season while remaining healthy to reach 30. Will the stars and ligaments align?

Will the Twins waste Buxton’s best season?

Buxton’s exploits on Thursday helped end a six-game losing streak. On June 5, the Twins placed ace Pablo López on the injured list, and Zebby Matthews, perhaps their best young pitcher, injured his shoulder.

Since then, the Twins are 3-10.

Their rotation carried them to a 13-game winning streak and a run of dominance in May. Injuries have transformed that rotation from a strength into a weakness.

Can the Twins pitch well enough, and get enough other offensive contributions, to take advantage of what might be Buxton’s best season?

This question will sound strange, but it’s the primary reality of the 2025 Twins’ season:

Will the rest of the Twins’ roster be healthy enough to support their most injury-prone star?

If the season ended today, Buxton would have produced the second-highest OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage) of his career.

His performance during the 2021 season hints that he could produce at an even higher rate than he has thus far this season.

His OPS this year is .898.

His OPS in 2021 was 1.005 — the stuff of legends.

But he played in only 61 games that year. The Twins, coming off two division titles, won just 73 games and finished last in the American League Central.

The state of the Twins’ rotation, incessant injuries to key players and the improbability of overtaking Detroit to win the division have led to a predictable level of pessimism from the fan base.

With Bailey Ober and David Festa struggling, that pessimism is currently justified.

There is also the possibility, however remote, that the Twins could stay in contention and have López and Buxton leading the way down the stretch, with Buxton chasing that 30-30 plateau and a few MVP votes.