The Twins made the surprising announcement Friday that rookie center fielder Byron Buxton was placed on the 15-day disabled list due to a left thumb sprain, which he suffered Tuesday against the White Sox while attempting to steal second base.
Twins manager Paul Molitor told Go 96.3 FM that Buxton will likely be out longer than the minimum 15 days on the disabled list.
"(Buxton) is going to have to back off a while, probably at least a month," Molitor said.
The Twins recalled Danny Santana from Triple-A Rochester to replace Buxton, who is batting .189 (7 for 37) with no home runs, no RBI, five runs, two walks, 15 strikeouts and one stolen base in 11 games since his highly anticipated promotion from the minors.
Buxton entered the season as the top prospect in baseball according to MLB.com. Baseball America had him ranked as the second-best prospect.