Because of his potential—and a solid September last year—many thought the Twins' Byron Buxton was primed for a great 2017. Dave Cameron at FanGraphs analyzed Buxton's first 7 games (0.69/.100/.103) and found that it was the fourth worst week of offensive performance in the last 15 years. If Buxton bombs again 2017, will the Twins give up on him?
Byron Buxton
| Year | AB | AVG/OBP/SLG | SO |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 129 | .209/.250/.326 | 44 |
| 2016 | 298 | .225/.285/.430 | 118 |
| 2017 | 29 | .069/.100/.103 | 17 |
Owners of MLB teams should be very happy men and women, or at least that was my takeaway from Forbes' updated list of MLB team values. The average MLB team is worth $1.54 billion, up 19% from last year. As a specific case study, think about the Cubs and White Sox. When the Ricketts family bought the Cubs in 2009, they paid approximately $875 million. According to Forbes, the White Sox (who rank as the 15th most valuable franchise) are currently worth $1.35 billion, with the Cubs coming in fourth at $2.68 billion.
Amidst what will likely be a very long season for the White Sox, yesterday's game against the Indians was a neat moment. SP Derek Holland pitched six innings of one-hit baseball, in a game he dedicated to his grandma who passed away during spring training. Before his first pitch, Holland wrote "Granny" in the dirt behind the mound, something he'll do before every start the rest of the year.