ARLINGTON -- The Twins received good news Saturday, as an MRI exam on Byron Buxton's right knee revealed no structural damage and he was diagnosed with only a bone bruise after colliding with the center-field wall in Friday's game against the Rangers.
The injury initially looked to be severe, as Buxton couldn't put weight on his right knee and had to be carted off the field. But Buxton felt much better Saturday, and tested out his knee both on the exercise bike and during running drills in the outfield. He'll be able to avoid the 15-day disabled list and he believes he'll be ready to play again this weekend.
"I feel pretty good," Buxton said. "I did some more work on it last night and kept it loose and elevated a little bit. I feel good enough to be available the rest of the weekend."
Buxton, who has dealt with his fair share of injuries in recent years, admitted it was a relief to hear that he didn't suffer a major injury, but he was always optimistic he was going to be fine.
"It felt good," Buxton said of hearing the MRI results. "My legs are a big part of what I do so it's always good to hear good news like that."
Twins manager Paul Molitor echoed Buxton's statements, as he came out to center field to check on Buxton after the collision and thought it could've been a severe injury given Buxton's emotions after the play.
"It was concerning to see his reaction after the collision, but thankfully the MRI came back negative today," Molitor said. "There's some bone bruising, but I'm not sure it could grade how deep it goes. But it's not a question of the DL for us."
Molitor added it was nice to get positive news on the injury front, considering the club has been plagued by injuries with players such as Glen Perkins, Phil Hughes, Trevor Plouffe, Ervin Santana, Miguel Sano, Kyle Gibson, Danny Santana, Eduardo Escobar and Trevor May being placed on the 15-day disabled list at various points this season.
"Last night, I was thinking about it and the way he reacted and seeing it up close, it seemed like it had the potential to be much worse," Molitor said. "Thankfully, in this case we got good news."