The longer Matt Wallner plays in the majors, the more comfortable he gets. The more comfortable the Twins’ outfielder gets, the more he hits.

With the exception of two games in Texas this month — 0 for 6, four strikeouts in a pair of victories over the Rangers — Wallner said he has felt good at the plate since returning to the big league club on July 7, and the numbers show it. Since then, he’s hitting .307 with 20 extra-base hits (nine of them home runs) and a 1.100 OPS.

“In Texas, I didn’t feel great. But now I feel good again,” he said before Monday night’s series opener against the Atlanta Braves at Target Field. “Now, it’s just a matter of getting a pitch to hit, honestly.”

Wallner, 27, is hitting a lot of what he can get to, and hitting it hard. His long, left-handed stroke is one of the more powerful in the majors, sending balls flying at an average speed of 94 mph, which ranks sixth among MLB hitters with at least 50 batted-ball events this season.

His max velocity of 116.8 this season ranks 11th. Always a slugger, Wallner didn’t become aware of how hard he hits the ball until fairly recently.

“I probably didn’t really care about it until a couple years ago — not that I really, really care about it,” he said. “Obviously, I want to hit the ball hard, but I didn’t even notice it until a couple years ago.”

Wallner’s fly balls and line drives this season average 99.4 mph, fourth in the majors, just below New York Yankees boppers Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge and Juan Soto, who rank 1-2-3 in FB/LD exit velocity. Judge on Sunday hit his 50th and 51st home runs of the season, putting him on pace to break his own American League record of the 62 he hit in 2022.

It’s a remarkable feat at any time, but especially in a season with batting averages down. It was a league-wide .244 after Sunday’s games, a level most commonly associated with the last pitchers era in the late 1960s.

“It’s unbelievable,” Wallner said. “You look every day, he and (Shohei) Ohtani (40) have another homer. It really is unreal.”

Asked if he sees a fellow slugger like Judge and aspires to that kind of success, Wallner said, “No, I feel like he’s kind of one of a kind.”

But then he continues.

“I mean, yeah, it would be awesome,” he said. “So, yeah, I guess yes. It would be great to aspire to be that good, but I don’t look to him to see how he does stuff, or his swing or anything. But, yeah, what he does is incredible.”

The Twins will take Wallner’s current pace of production, and his improving play in left field.

“We’re working on jumps,” he said. “That’s really the one thing I need to work on, I feel — just timing, reacting once the ball’s off the bat. That’s a little bit below average. But my routes have been good. I feel like I’m making smart decisions about where to throw the ball for the most part. Little stuff like that adds up for me.”

Buxton watch

Byron Buxton missed his 13th game since pulling himself out of an 8-3 victory over Kansas City on Aug. 12. He was later placed on the 10-day injured list with inflammation in his right hip.

Manager Rocco Baldelli said Monday that Buxton is “getting closer” and likely will be sent on a rehab assignment before rejoining the big league team.

“I’m anticipating him going on a rehab assignment when he’s ready to come back, and I think we’re getting closer to that,” he said. “We’re not there yet as far as picking dates, but I do think he will.”

Buxton has been playing center field most of the season — 69 games — after being limited to designated hitting by hip and knee injuries in 2023. Badelli said he doesn’t anticipate bringing Buxton back only as a DH.

“We’re at our best when he’s in center field,” the manager said. “We need to get him ready to come back, play the outfield. Could anything change between now and the coming weeks? Maybe. But I don’t anticipate that.”

Briefly

Left-hander Steven Okert cleared waivers and accepted his assignment to Class AAA St. Paul. He is expected to report Tuesday. … Shortstop Carlos Correa missed his 35th consecutive game since being sidelined by plantar fasciitis in his right foot. … Monday’s game was halted after 1½ innings because of strong thunderstorms in the area and resumed after an 86-minute delay.

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