Injuries & Moves: Varland recalled in relief role; Sands optioned
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Sept. 4: RHP Louie Varland recalled from Triple-A St. Paul; RHP Cole Sands optioned to Triple-A St. Paul
Varland was brought up for the first time since June to pitch in a bullpen role down the stretch -- and the top starting prospect indicated that he was initially reluctant to make the transition from starting to relief. Manager Rocco Baldelli indicated that Varland could be available for anything from one out to three innings, and Varland's stuff played up as it peaked at 100.2 mph in a four-inning bullpen appearance for St. Paul last Thursday.
"I believe the best version of myself's a starter," Varland said. "Starters also get paid. Yeah. I want to stay a starter as long as I possibly can. ... We're in the playoff hunt. We're looking to make a push in the playoffs. All hands on deck. This is the role that they needed, and to try me out in the role, I found some success. We're going to try it out."
Sept. 3: OF Michael A. Taylor (right hamstring strain) placed on 10-day injured list; SS Willi Castro activated from 10-day injured list
After spending the last week playing through a hamstring injury that was limiting his speed and mobility, Taylor is being placed on the injured list in hopes that some time off will help him return to form. Baldelli applauded the toughness Taylor demonstrated in playing through injury as the Twins make a push for the postseason and was cautiously optimistic that Taylor will rejoin the Twins in a couple of weeks.
“It’s not an easy decision,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. “He didn’t have one traumatic, acute pull of his hamstring. It’s something that he’s been playing through. He’s not able to sprint. He’s not able to steal a base. It’s very difficult for him to score from second base on a base hit. We need him to be able to play center field, and right now, that is something he simply cannot do five or six times a week.”
Sept. 2: DH/OF Byron Buxton exits rehab game early
Buxton, who sustained a hamstring injury in the Twins’ series opener against the Cardinals on Aug. 1, began his rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul on Wednesday. He went 1-for-2 with two walks and played center field for seven innings.
During his second rehab game on Friday, though, Buxton experienced soreness in the patella tendon of his right knee while starting at DH for the Saints, and he was removed from the game after two at-bats.
“We're going to continue to treat the situation day to day like we said we would from the start,” Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. “He obviously is dealing with some soreness, and we're going to wait until that soreness has resolved and he's able to [play] in order to play again.”
The Twins had been experimenting with the idea of Buxton, who had just been at DH this season, playing in the outfield again, though this latest injury could hinder those plans.
INJURY UPDATES
10-day IL and 15-day IL
DH/OF Byron Buxton (right hamstring strain)
Expected return: September
Buxton began a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul on Aug. 30 but was removed from his second rehab game on Sept. 1 following only two at-bats after he experienced soreness in the patella tendon of his right knee. He will not travel to Louisville with Triple-A St. Paul for this week's road trip as he undergoes treatment on the knee, and the Twins will progress him back to game action when he's ready. Manager Rocco Baldelli indicated the Twins still have not ruled out a return to center field.
“I wouldn’t call it a new injury,” Baldelli said. “He’s dealt with some patella tendinitis in his past. It’s more of a volume issue than an acute issue. The more he’s on his feet, the more his knee feels it.”
Buxton sustained the initial hamstring strain while legging out a double during the Twins' series opener on Aug. 1 in St. Louis. (Last updated: Sept. 4)
1B/OF Alex Kirilloff (right shoulder strain)
Expected return: September
Kirilloff began a rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul on Aug. 30, and he will continue playing rehab games with the Saints this week, according to manager Rocco Baldelli, for "at least a few more days," he said. Kirilloff entered Monday's off-day having gone 7-for-17 (.412) with two homers and a double in four rehab games.
Kirilloff went on the 10-day injured list on July 30 due to the shoulder injury he sustained while making a diving play in the field during a game earlier in the week. He underwent an MRI exam and received a cortisone injection in his right shoulder on July 31. (Last updated: Sept. 4)
OF Michael A. Taylor (right hamstring strain)
Expected return: September
Taylor had been playing through the injury, but after experiencing a dip in speed and mobility in the field, the outfielder was placed on the 10-day injured list on Sept. 3. The Twins are hopeful that a couple of weeks' rest will help Taylor return to form. Manager Rocco Baldelli was optimistic that the outfielder won’t miss extended time and will be able to return to action this season.
“It’s not an easy decision,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. “He didn’t have one traumatic, acute pull of his hamstring. It’s something that he’s been playing through. He’s not able to sprint. He’s not able to steal a base. It’s very difficult for him to score from second base on a base hit. We need him to be able to play center field and right now that is something he simply cannot do five or six times a week." (Last updated: Sept. 3)
60-day IL
RHP Chris Paddack (Tommy John surgery)
Expected return: Late September
Paddack threw two innings of live batting practice at the Twins' Minor League complex in Fort Myers, Fla., on Aug. 25, and following another live session last week, he remains on track to begin a formal rehab assignment with Single-A Fort Myers on Sept. 6. If all goes well, he hopes to be ready for action on Sept. 22, if there's a role for him in the Majors. He said on Aug. 29 that he'd already discussed what that role could look like but wasn't ready to publicly announce it.
"I’m super excited," Paddack said. "I feel outstanding, I feel healthy, I feel strong, I feel explosive. I’ve learned, compared to the first go-around, this one is way better. All the I's are dotted and T's are crossed, and I’ve just got to continue to stay in stride. Everything has been going great." (Last updated: Sept. 4)
RHP Brock Stewart (right elbow soreness)
Expected return: September
Stewart will ramp up to a 25-pitch bullpen session on Sept. 5, continuing a buildup that began when he threw a 15-pitch bullpen session at Target Field on Aug. 25. That had been his first since he experienced a setback following his last bullpen on July 29, after which a recurrence of soreness in his right forearm resulted in his needing extra recovery time. Stewart previously said his target return date to the Twins is Sept. 10 as a best-case scenario.
"I thought I was going to be back way sooner, so it’s been killing me, as you guys can imagine," Stewart said. (Last updated: Sept. 4)
RHP Jorge Alcala (right radial stress fracture)
Expected return: TBD
Alcala continued his live batting practice progression with another outing in St. Paul on Sept. 3 and will head to the Twins' Minor League complex in Fort Myers, Fla., to continue throwing to live hitters, with his next session scheduled for Sept. 5.
The Twins placed Alcala on the IL on May 16 after he was unable to participate in his throwing program without discomfort, and further tests revealed a stress fracture to the radius bone in his right forearm, an injury without much precedent among pitchers, according to head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta. (Last updated: Sept. 4)
3B Jose Miranda (right shoulder impingement)
Expected return: TBD
Miranda had started throwing again during the second week of August and was hitting off the tee as part of a four-week progression back into full action. He was hoping to get into games by September, but he was unsure if he would return to the Twins in 2023, noting that it would depend on where they were in the season and their roster needs. His move to the 60-day IL on Sept. 1 ensures he's out until at least Sept. 15.
An MRI exam confirmed the diagnosis of an impingement in Miranda's shoulder after he was scratched from the Twins' July 14 game against the A's with a flare-up of the shoulder soreness that has bothered him since Spring Training and caused his withdrawal from the World Baseball Classic. He received a platelet-rich plasma injection on July 17 and was shut down for three weeks before he began throwing activity. (Last updated: Sept. 1)
RHP Oliver Ortega (left lumbar strain)
Expected return: TBD
The Twins placed Ortega on the 15-day IL on Aug. 24, two days after he exited during the middle of a plate appearance in the seventh inning of the club's eventual loss to Milwaukee. They transferred him to the 60-day IL on Aug. 28. (Last updated: Aug. 28)
OF/INF Nick Gordon (right tibia fracture)
Expected return: Possibly September
Gordon will begin some ground-based running activities during the second week of August, per head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta, but he likely won't build up until the end of August, and the Twins are anticipating Gordon working into game action again before the end of the season. (Last updated: Aug. 15)
RHP José De León (right flexor muscle strain)
Expected return: 2024
De León underwent successful Tommy John surgery on July 19 with Dr. Chris Camp, the Twins' medical director and director of high performance, after blowing out his elbow for the second time against the Tigers on June 24. He exited that game against Detroit before he even faced a batter, as he said he felt something akin to an "electric shock" in his right elbow on his final warmup pitch, causing him to drop his glove, immediately clutch his elbow and run off the mound.
Per the Twins, the procedure was a UCL reconstruction with an internal brace, which was also accompanied by an osteophyte removal, an ulnar nerve decompression and a flexor/pronator tendon repair. He was transferred to the 60-day injured list on Aug. 3. (Last updated: Aug. 3)
RHP Tyler Mahle (Tommy John surgery)
Expected return: 2024
Mahle, who was removed from his start on April 27 vs. Kansas City with noticeably diminished velocity, underwent Tommy John surgery on May 22 with Dr. Keith Meister. The club’s original plan was to shut Mahle down for at least four weeks and seek a second opinion upon transferring him to the 60-day injured list.
The right-hander was acquired by the Twins from the Reds in a Trade Deadline deal last Aug. 2 and is set to become a free agent after this season. (Last updated: May 22)