What skill would Twins players steal from a teammate? There was an 'easy answer'

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Byron Buxton has a message for his teammates: be careful what you wish for.

I had the idea recently to go around the clubhouse and ask Twins players what I thought was a fun and interesting question: If you could have any tool from any one of your teammates, what would it be?

I thought some people might say Luke Keaschall’s bat-to-ball ability, or Matt Wallner’s power or arm. They didn’t. There was only one answer. You can probably guess what it was.

“The easy answer would be, ‘Buck’s speed would be fun,’” said Royce Lewis. “I’m trying to be creative, but Buck’s speed is easy.”

Eric Wagaman?

“I would say Buck’s speed. That’s the first thing. It looks like it’s just effortless and he’s just flying.”

And what about Kody Clemens?

“I know exactly what everyone is saying, and I’m probably going to say the same thing: Buck’s speed.”

Informed of the unanimity, Buxton laughed. He appreciated it. But he also had a bit of a warning. It’s not as simple as it seems. With great speed comes great responsibility. You have to know how to slow down, for one thing.

“I gotta put on the brakes, man!” said Buxton. “You’ve got to learn how to use it! I know how to use it, but [I’m still learning to] use it correctly. If I’m going full speed and I slide, I can slide from about 10 feet because I’m moving. Most people don’t do that. You aren’t going that fast to be able to create that much momentum …

“I had to learn that. It isn’t like I could just get to the bag and slide. Double plays, I’m going fast, I have to slide early, because I don’t want to get on the bag and now I’m messing with somebody’s career.”

And then there’s the maintenance. You can be born with natural speed, but getting the most out of it requires grueling work. Not that Buxton would trade it for anything, but he doesn’t just show up at camp in February magically able to go first to third in a flash. It’s long days starting at the beginning of the offseason.

“You want to get faster and you want to keep it, that’s how we’re going to have to do it,” he said. “I bought into it and it’s just something now, I hate it every offseason. It’s a passion. I hate it. I don’t hate anything. But it’s a good hate. ‘I can’t stand you today but I’m going to beat you.’”

And as for Buxton himself? What tool would he want from elsewhere in the Twins' clubhouse? Well, it’s not a conventional tool, but his answer tells you a lot about Buxton. First, he asked for the day-to-day steadiness of veteran relievers Liam Hendriks and Andrew Chafin.

“To be able to go through a season with those guys, it’s their personality,” he said. “Nothing deviates them from having a good day. Liam, that man could go out there and give up three walks and come back in here and be like, ‘Well, I sucked today!’ and it’s like, what are you going to say to that? He’s being accountable, he’s being responsible.

"Same way with Chaf. I asked him, ‘Chaf, how’d you do?’ ‘Not very good!’

“It was like, all right then. Those conversations right there, that’s what makes us grow as a player to get better. They've been through more than I have.”

But that was only part one.

“And then I’m going to say any young guy in here, too,” Buxton said. “The game is changing, ABS, they’ve been doing this for a few years. The knowledge that they’ve got from that is something that I could use for not just myself, but all of us. So I’m going to say the brains of the guys coming up.”

So there you have it: everyone else wants Buxton’s speed. Buxton wants a piece of everybody else’s mind.