CHICAGO – Brandon Kintzler looked at his index finger, saw the blood oozing around the broken fingernail, and summoned home plate umpire Dana DeMuth, along with Twins manager Paul Molitor and athletic trainer Tony Leo, to the mound in the ninth inning.
Not because he wanted medical assistance. He just wanted a witness.
"We put too much super glue on [the nail]. It was covered, and I was having trouble feeling the ball," the Twins' closer said. "So I was trying to peel it off without looking like I was cheating."
A crowd gathered on the mound, and Kintzler was able to peel away enough of the glue to continue pitching. "It wasn't really an injury," he said. "I was afraid [DeMuth] would think I was filing it or doing something to the ball."
The nail cracked during spring training, but with three days off between each outing, it was never a problem. "I just cut and filed it each time, and it was fine. It never even bled in spring training," Kintzler said.
It bled Sunday, though, which may be more problematic.
"I didn't even notice it until I was in the game, so we put more super glue on after the eighth inning ended," he said. "I'm glad we have [Monday] off. We'll see how it does."
Sneaking a peek
Derek Falvey doesn't want to comment on possible draftees yet, but his interest in Sherman Oaks, Calif., pitcher/shortstop Hunter Greene is a little conspicuous: That was Falvey sitting behind the plate (and caught on video) at Greene's complete-game performance for Notre Dame High School on Friday.
"You can [scout] a lot off of video. You can get a pretty good look. But when you get a chance to meet somebody, interact, say hello, meet their parents, be around the teammates, talk to the coaches, it just gives you a broader perspective," the Twins' chief baseball officer said Sunday, after jokingly pretending to know nothing about the trip. "Our scouts — Taylor Cameron was out there, and [scouting director] Sean Johnson and [West Coast supervisor] Elliott Strankman — they're all doing that, too. So it's just another set of eyes."
The Twins will select first in the June 12 draft, and Greene, a 17-year-old righthander who hit 100 mph with Falvey in attendance, is widely considered the likely choice. But the Twins are a long way from deciding that, Falvey said. "There are some years where the industry might see a clear number one, there are other years where it's a little bit more spread out. We're not going to cross anyone off the list at this stage," he said. "The reality is, we won't have a decision made until we get through the entirety of the scouting season. We want to make sure we get all the way to the end, with as much information as possible."
He and General Manager Thad Levine will both take several trips to personally view prospects, more this year with the overall No. 1 than in a year when they pick later. "We're getting to know as many players as possible, as deep as possible," Falvey said.
On the mend
• Glen Perkins threw 25 pitches "with about 80-90 percent intensity" on Saturday, Falvey said, and will increase it to 30 on Tuesday as he works back from shoulder surgery.
• Infielder Ehire Adrianza played catch and hit off a tee but has yet to take part in more serious work as his strained oblique heals. He'll require some rehab games before the Twins decide whether to put him on the roster or try to get him through waivers.
• Lefthander Ryan O'Rourke, sidelined because of a forearm strain, will begin a throwing program late this week.
