Carlos Correa on injured list for concussion; Byron Buxton undergoing tests

MILWAUKEE – The Twins placed Carlos Correa on the seven-day concussion list Friday, one day after his collision with Byron Buxton in shallow center field, while Buxton continues to test for a concussion.

Buxton, who attended the team's pregame hitters' meeting but didn't participate in on-field drills before Friday's series opener against the Milwaukee Brewers, remains on the Twins' active roster as he undergoes more testing under Major League Baseball's concussion protocols.

The Twins promoted shortstop Ryan Fitzgerald, who was hitting well at Class AAA, to fill Correa's spot on the roster.

Players can remain in MLB's concussion protocols for multiple days before they're cleared to play. MLB requires all players to undergo baseline neurocognitive testing before the start of the season, and the baseline data can provide a way to measure players after a potential brain injury.

"We could know more any time with Buck, but the last I'd heard, he was still going through some versions of the testing," Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. "There are different thresholds, different stages to those tests."

Correa was briefly at American Family Field on Friday, but he returned to the team's hotel more than four hours before Friday's game.

"Some of the tests that [Correa] actually went through today went fine and some didn't," Baldelli said. "As soon as something doesn't, that's it. There is nothing else to really discuss. We get him basically into the recovery phase as opposed to us testing him and seeing if he can play."

In Baltimore on Thursday, Buxton secured a catch in the third inning before crashing into the back of Correa, their heads knocking against each other as they fell to the ground.

"There may be only a 3-, 4-, 5-foot area on the field where you're in the other guy's space," said Baldelli, who hadn't watched a replay of the collision. "It just found that place."

Fitzgerald, a lefthanded hitter who will turn 31 next month, gives the Twins another middle infielder with Correa sidelined.

In 35 games with the Class AAA St. Paul Saints this year, Fitzgerald was batting .328 with 11 doubles, four homers, 21 RBI and a .426 on-base percentage.

"Any opportunity I can get — I told Rocco, if you want me to catch, just get me the gear," said Fitzgerald, who spent eight years toiling in the minor leagues.

It's been a long road for Fitzgerald, who wasn't picked in the 40-round 2016 amateur draft out of Creighton. The Burr Ridge, Ill., native began his pro career with the independent Gary SouthShore Rail Cats in 2017, driving an hour to games and receiving $800 a month.

Fitzgerald spent six years in the Boston Red Sox's farm system, one year with the Kansas City Royals' Class AAA team and two offseasons playing in the Dominican Winter League before he signed a minor league deal with the Twins in January.

"You know, someday I'm going to tell my kids to chase their dream. How can I tell them to chase their dream if I don't?" Fitzgerald said. "I have to put my head on the pillow at night and be able to sleep knowing I gave everything I had."

After Saints manager Toby Gardenhire told Fitzgerald he was headed to the big leagues, Fitzgerald's flight from Des Moines was canceled, so he made the five-hour drive to Milwaukee with his girlfriend.

What does Fitzgerald want Twins fans to know about him?

"Good hair, that's No. 1," he joked.

Castro leaves with injury

Willi Castro fouled a pitch off his right knee in the first inning Friday, immediately dropping to the ground and yelling.

Castro, who wears a protective guard around his right shin, struck out when he finished the at-bat, and he played an inning in left field before he was removed from the game. Fitzgerald, making his MLB debut, replaced Castro in the lineup.

"Having Willi to move around the field in our current setup is a necessity," Baldelli said before Friday's game. "It's not a luxury. It's something that we need."

Etc.

• Harrison Bader was out of the lineup Friday after missing a game with left groin tightness, but he ran pregame sprints on the field. "Trending in a good direction," Baldelli said. "He was able to not just get through that but do it, give two thumbs up."
• The Twins haven't announced Zebby Matthews as their starter for Sunday's series finale in Milwaukee, but he was scratched from his scheduled Class AAA start Friday.
• Twins reliever Michael Tonkin was transferred to the 60-day injured list to make room for Fitzgerald on the 40-man roster. Tonkin recently received a cortisone shot for biceps tendinitis.
• Baldelli said he's feeling better after he had to depart midgame in Wednesday's doubleheader with an illness. "I ate last night for the first time in two days, so that was a positive," he said.