It's been a red-hot start to May for Byron Buxton and the Twins

Buxton drew a walk and scored on Brooks Lee's two-run double in the eighth inning that broke open a 2-2 game. He stole second in the first inning, his eighth stolen base of the year, and later scored on Ty France's RBI single. His 95 mph strike to home plate prevented the Orioles from taking a 3-1 lead in the sixth inning. And even though Buxton didn't connect at the plate, his impact was once again felt in what's been a red-hot month of May, during which the Twins have gone 5-2.

In those seven games, Buxton is slashing .393/.714/1.166 with three home runs, a double and eight RBIs. After his stolen base Thursday, Buxton joined just three other major leaguers — the Los Angeles' Dodgers Shohei Ohtani and the Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker — with nine or more home runs and eight or more stolen bases this season.

Both the Twins and Buxton appear to be putting a slow start to the season far in the rearview mirror. Buxton recorded just one hit in Minnesota's first four games of the year before finally finding a rhythm in April, getting red hot in May. The Twins lost those first four games, but rattled off four straight wins in April, and the five-game streak now is their best of the year.

Now, Buxton is slashing .270/.533/.844 with nine home runs, five doubles, two triples and 25 RBIs for the season. After the five-game win streak, the Twins have nearly clawed their way back to .500 — now 18-20 and only six games back of the Detroit Tigers in the American League Central Division. Buxton is heating up, and it's no coincidence the Twins are too.

Recommended articles