Minnesota Twins activate Rosario & Cron, but Buxton heads to concussion protocol

The Minnesota Twins got two of their regulars back for Tuesday’s opener with the New York Mets, but lost their center fielder to a concussion.

The Minnesota Twins are slowly creeping back to full strength after the All-Star break as the team announced that outfielder Eddie Rosario and first baseman C.J. Cron have been activated from the injured list in time for Tuesday’s opener against the New York Mets.

Rosario was injured on June 26 when he turned his ankle in a game against the Tampa Bay Rays. While the Twins decided to put Rosario on the injured list a couple of days later to allow him to heal over the break, Minnesota decided to hold him out through last weekend’s series in Cleveland to make sure he was back to full strength.

Rosario was having an All-Star caliber season before going down with the injury, hitting .282 with 20 HR and 60 RBI as the cleanup hitter in the Twins lineup. With the addition of his strong arm in center field, the Twins will be getting back one of their premiere hitters just in time for a nine-game homestand.

Cron’s injury was a little less obvious as he was placed on the injured list with a thumb injury after smacking a pair of doubles in the Twins’ 15-6 win over the Texas Rangers on July 5. While the Twins have gotten by with Miguel Sano at first base in his absence, Cron should be an upgrade defensively and the hope that his tricky thumb won’t be a factor in a season that has seen him post a .266 average with 17 HR and 54 RBI.

To make room for Cron and Rosario, the Twins placed Byron Buxton on the seven-day concussion protocol list (via Dave Schwartz of KARE 11) and designated relief pitcher Mike Morin for assignment according to Dan Hayes of The Athletic.

Buxton was injured during a diving catch against the Cleveland Indians on July 13 and while he stayed in the game, he began to have lingering symptoms after sitting out Sunday’s series finale. With Buxton still not feeling well, the Twins decided to play it safe and give their starting center fielder a week off.

For Morin, he started the season off well and posted a 3.18 ERA in 22 1/3 innings. While the numbers look nice, the peripherals told a different story for the 28-year old. Morin had registered a weak 4.8 strikeouts per nine innings and his BABIP for this season was unsustainable at .230. This coupled with allowing 10 runs (seven earned) in his last 11 1/3 innings caused the Twins to send the right-hander packing.

The Twins will open a two-game series on Tuesday night against the Mets before opening a four-game series with Oakland this weekend.