Byron Buxton hits for cycle, driving Twins to victory over Pirates

Jerry Zgoda, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Jul 12, 2025

Published in Baseball

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MINNEAPOLIS — Atlanta- and All-Star Game-bound Byron Buxton played like an All-Star and then some Saturday at Target Field, where he became the 12th Twins batter in club history to hit for the cycle.

He went 5 for 5, his seventh-inning solo home run capping the quadruple in a 12-4 beating of Pittsburgh. That happened on the day fans lined up around the block to receive a Byron Buxton bobblehead doll.

The final blow was a towering blast that landed well up in the center-field berm, just two days before he’s scheduled to compete in the All-Star Home Run Derby and three days before the big game itself.

Buxton’s double Saturday was of the ground-rule variety, a ball that bounced over the left-field fence in the third inning.

His triple came an inning earlier, when he legged a drive to the center-field wall all the way to third base with fists pumping afterward.

The home run in the seventh was followed immediately by Willi Castro’s homer that gave the Twins a 12-3 lead.

Buxton became the first Twin to hit for the cycle since Jorge Polanco against Philadelphia in 2019 and the first Twin to do it at home since Michael Cuddyer in May 2009.

He’s the first player to do it at Target Field.

It came two days after he missed a game because of a sore hand injured when he was hit by a pitch Thursday.

The Twins won for the sixth time in eight games on their nine-game pre-All-Star break homestand that ends Sunday at Target Field.

After winning three-game series against Tampa Bay and the Chicago Cubs, they beat the reeling Pirates on Saturday for the second time in as many games.

The Twins led 9-0 by the end of the third inning after they scored six runs in the second and three more in the third.

The Pirates lost their eighth consecutive game.

The Twins put together a tapestry of relief pitchers that kept them well out of the Pirates’ reach.

Reliever Cole Sands started and pitched two 1-2-3 innings before Travis Adams entered and threw four innings, striking out three and giving up two runs.

Newly called-up Anthony Misiewicz came on in the top of the seventh, followed by Justin Topa.

The Pirates countered with a run in the top of the fourth on left fielder Jack Suwinski’s solo homer on the first pitch of the fifth inning.

Buxton again set the tone from the Twins’ first inning. He beat out an infield hit, singling to shortstop, and got as far as third base before he was left stranded.

No matter.

Second baseman Kody Clemens’ three-run homer — his 12th home run of the season — brought home Royce Lewis and Ty France ahead of him with one out in the second.

Buxton kept the rally going by legging out a triple over the head of Pirates center fielder Oneil Cruz that went to the wall.

He slid headfirst into third, just to be safe, turned his body toward the afternoon crowd and pumped his arms skyward and flexed away while on one knee.

Buxton scored when Castro came up next and singled him home.

Castro advanced on a Pittsburgh throwing error, then scored from second base when Ryan Jeffers singled to right and Castro just beat the throw to home.

Trevor Larnach scored on Brooks Lee’s double to score the sixth and final run of the second inning.

The Twins scored three more in the third. Once again, Buxton was in the middle of it with his ground-rule double. He advanced to third on a Castro single before Larnach’s sacrifice fly to right field.

Matt Wallner hit a first-pitch, two-out solo homer high into the right-field stands to make it 10-2 in the sixth inning.

Pittsburgh added a run in the seventh and it was 10-3 Twins.