A healthy Byron Buxton is great for baseball. The Minnesota Twins center fielder is performing like an MVP, as he earned the top spot on our Week 12 #HighFive list.
1. Byron Buxton
Byron Buxton is aging like wine as he is on track to have the best year of his career following a 2025 season that saw him play in his most games (126) since 2017.
He entered Thursday collecting hits in five straight games and seven of his last eight.
Across his last seven games, Buxton has four homers, seven RBIs, an average of .444 with a .500 on-base percentage and a 1.000 slugging percentage.
Those four bombs bring his total to 23 on the year, good for third in the Majors, trailing only Kyle Schwarber and Yordan Alvarez.
Buxton is on pace to hit 50 homers this season, which would give him the Twins All-Time single-season record, passing Harmon Killebrew’s 49 hit in both 1964 and 1969.
2. Josh Bell
Josh Bell put on a show in his hometown of Dallas this week, homering against the Texas Rangers, the team he grew up watching for the first time in his career, and landing in the two spot on our #HighFive list.
Minnesota Twins Star Royce Lewis Speaks On Clubhouse Influence Of Veteran Josh Bell
Like the preceding Byron Buxton, Bell is off to a strong start in June, hitting .321 with three home runs, 13 RBIs and four doubles.
He had four consecutive games with two hits and has hit safely in nine of his last ten contests.
Bell ranks in the top five in RBIs, runs scored and doubles among all Major League designated hitters entering the Twins’ weekend series in Arizona against the Diamondbacks.
3. James Wood “Up to no good”
James Wood’s All-Star campaign has been in full force on the field, although the voters are not showing enough love at the polls as he ranks outside the top six. Despite this, he is in the top three among National League players for homers, runs scored, walks, on-base percentage and OPS.
With a resume like that, the question should not be whether he is deserving of one of the three National League outfield All-Star starting spots, rather where he ranks among NL MVP candidates.
James Wood Morphing Into Best Young Hitter in Baseball
Wood, who finished a double short of his first career cycle Sunday against the Seattle Mariners, entered Thursday with a slash line of .333/406./.741 with three homers, seven RBIs, four walks and a stolen base in his last seven games.
This weekend he will bring his Washington Nationals, who are three games over .500, into Tampa Bay to face a playoff-hopeful Rays team.
4. “Money” Michael Harris
Despite a nagging back injury affecting his availability, Michael Harris still made his way onto our Week 12 #HighFive list.
Michael Harris II is Back to His Rookie of the Year Form at the Plate
Harris has hits in eight of his last nine games and owns a .300 batting average over the month of June.
Fans have recognized his game, as he ranked fourth among the National League outfield All-Star poll after the first voting numbers were announced.
On the season, he has a .306 average with 41 RBIs, 14 home runs and three steals.
With Ronald Acuna Jr. back on the Injured List for what is expected to be a long time, the Atlanta Braves need Harris at full strength as soon as possible so that he can help carry the offensive load until the All-Star Break.
5. Chase Burns
Chase Burns picked up his first win of June and extended his streak of allowing two or fewer runs in a game to 11, earning the fifth and final spot on our Week 12 #HighFive list.
Chase Burns Is An Electrifying New Pitcher In Baseball
Burns reached the 100-pitch mark for the second time and second straight start this season, throwing five shutout innings, allowing four hits, walking three and striking out seven.
He lowered his ERA to 2.01, which ranks third amongst all Major League pitchers, while his 95 strikeouts have him just inside of the top 10.
Burns’ next start will be this Sunday, in the Bronx against the New York Yankees.
