Minnesota Twins All-Star outfielder Byron Buxton was removed from Sunday’s win over the New York Yankees after sliding into second base and aggravating his right hip pain. He previously had missed four games with what the team called hip impingement. His status moving forward is unclear at this time.

Impingement is a term whose meaning has changed as the knowledge of the condition has evolved. In the hip, impingement can be divided into two categories which I call “true” and “pseudo” impingement. True impingement occurs when the soft tissue of the hip joint—think the labrum, which deeps the hip socket and provides greater stability, and/or the joint capsule, which is a group of ligaments that hold the hip together—is pinched, or impinged, by changes in the bone structure of the femur and/or pelvis.

A CAM impingement is caused by an abnormal growth of the bone at the head and neck of the femur; a pincer impingement is caused by excessive bone located at the rim of the socket; and mixed impingement is a combination of the two.

True impingements often causes sharp and achy pain at the front of the hip that radiates towards the back and sometimes down the groin and inner leg. This condition can often be successfully rehabilitated conservatively by improving the strength and mobility of the hip musculature to offload the hip joint and whatever tissue is impinged. If conservative measures don’t work, surgical intervention to shave down the excessive bone and clean up any labrum fraying or a cortisone injection to reduce inflammation may be warranted.

Pseudo impingement is condition that presents similarly to true impingement—front of the hip pain, pain with running or other activity, “catching”, “clicking”, “pinching”—but there isn’t any evidence of the boney changes or soft tissue structures getting pinched as described above. There is, generally speaking, no surgical options for this condition, though, again, conservative rehabilitation and/or a cortisone injection are often effective for reducing symptoms and promoting return to play.

It’s unclear which form of impingement Buxton is dealing with; however, the team has elected to treat him conservatively to this point with no evidence that surgery is being considered. For what it’s worth, Buxton seems relatively unconcerned about the injury, telling reporters after the win, “It’s one of those things where I just don’t want to set myself back farther…Just being smart about what I’m doing and making sure I’m on the field more than I’m not on the field.” (Buxton has an extensive injury history and is tracking to appear in over 100 games for only the fourth time in his career and his third in a row.)

Impingement, both true and pseudo, can present at any joint, though it most commonly presents in those such as the hip, shoulder, ankle, and elbow. As such, it is a very common condition in baseball.

Notable names in professional baseball to suffer from shoulder impingement in 2026 include Brooks Kriske of the Athletics, Tyler Gilbert of the Chicago White Sox, and Carlos Rodriguez of the Milwaukee Brewers.

In the shoulder, rarely is the condition a true impingement. Traditionally, it was believed that muscle weakness and tightness in the injured shoulder joint caused the humerus of the upper arm to migrate upwards during overhead motions, causing the tendon of the supraspinatus muscle (one of the rotator cuff muscles) to be pinched within the socket of the shoulder blade. However, in practice, this process occurs during most overhead activities, even in the absence of pain.

More often, what we thought was true impingement is actually a rotator cuff injury called tendinopathy, making the condition a pseudo impingement. (Tendinitis is a form of tendinopathy. The -itis suffix suggests that there is an active inflammatory process going on within the muscle tendon, when in actually, most of the time there is no inflammation. Therefore, the more correct term is tendinosis, with -osis implying a chronic, non-inflammatory condition. -opathy simply means “diseased,” so it is an umbrella term that captures both tendinitis and tendinosis.)

Shoulder impingement is a common injury among pitchers and other overhead athletes such as outside volleyball hitters and basketball players. Rarely does the condition progress to a more severe rotator cuff injury, such as a tear, and can be treated successfully with a rotator cuff strengthening program; however, the condition has a tendency to recur.

Lucas Seehafer is an assistant professor in the Exercise Science department at Bethany Lutheran College in Mankato, Minnesota. He also holds adjunct lab instructor positions in the Doctor of Physical Therapy programs at Tufts University, Boston and the Medical University of South Carolina. He holds a PhD in Kinesology and is a Doctor of Physical Therapy.