Josh Winder activated with St. Paul Saints, could return to Twins as long reliever

Josh Winder threw 57 pitches Tuesday during a three-inning start against Omaha for the St. Paul Saints. That one of them landed in the seats is a far less notable development, the Twins say, than the fact that his shoulder is healed enough to throw again.

Winder has pitched six minor league innings since going on the injured list in mid-July with a relapse of the shoulder impingement that has bothered him for two seasons, and he's given up six runs on seven hits, two of them homers, and four walks. He's struck out five.

"Physically, he's feeling good, the way the ball is coming out of his hand. That's the most important piece initially," said Derek Falvey, Twins president of baseball operations. And the mixed results? "He'll get some of the rust knocked off at some point," Falvey said.

Winder was activated from the minor league injured list Tuesday and placed on the Saints' roster, available to be promoted when the Twins choose. Falvey said he envisions Winder, who has started six games for the Twins, to return to a long-relief role, a three-inning bridge to the bullpen regulars.

"The likelihood for the starters that are on the injured list, notably him and Bailey [Ober], is that it would take most of September" to build up to a starter's workload," Falvey said. "So our view of that would be bringing those guys back in shorter stints, maybe a piggyback stint," or a planned relief role behind a short start. "There's a realistic chance that he's a three-inning guy down the stretch here. Maybe a little more than that."

The Twins' fourth consecutive come-from-behind victory represented an even bigger milestone for a franchise that has been housed in north downtown for 13 seasons now. With the win, the Twins' record at Target Field, counting the (winless) postseason, is now 497-496 all-time, the first time the Twins have been above .500 at home since they were 109-108 on July 30, 2012.

"We've played great here. The support has been really great here," Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said of the Twins' home, where they are now 40-28 this season. "We've gotten our best efforts in this building, and I don't think it's by accident."

It's a remarkable feat, given that the Twins were 60 games below .500 at home as recently as 2017.

A couple of Twins fans wandered the concourse over the weekend wearing authentic-looking No. 64 jerseys, with Jose Miranda's name on the back. They probably belonged to a couple of the infielder's relatives visiting from Puerto Rico, Miranda mused, because he gave them all Twins jerseys as gifts when he made the big leagues.

But in case they belonged to average Twins fans who are just dazzled by the rookie's debut season, Miranda said there's something they should know before they plunk down hundreds for a jersey.

"I'm asking for a new number next year," Miranda said with a laugh. "I've got about five possibilities in mind."

Like most rookies, Miranda was simply assigned whatever number was available at the time he was added to the 40-man roster, and though he has nothing against three-score-and-four, he would like a number more associated with a baseball hitter than a football lineman. "I have to wait until we see what's open next year," he said. "Rookies don't get to choose."

Twins catcher Sandy Leon carefully applies bright orange stickers — sometimes they're fluorescent green for night games — to his fingernails before each game he's behind the plate, relics of a baseball era that technology is ending.

"Most guys use PitchCom now. But not all," Leon said of his colorful nails. "I've got to be ready to [flash] signs."

The electronic signaling system, in which catchers push a button on a keypad attached to their wrist to activate a transmitted vocal instruction of what pitch to throw, was introduced to the major leagues this season in order to prevent opposing teams from stealing signs. It also has the effect of speeding up the pitch-calling process — which not every pitcher wants.

"Some guys want to control the pace a little more," particularly veterans who have spent decades looking in for signs from the catcher, Leon said. Sonny Gray, for instance, usually prefers to look for Leon's sign, using PitchCom only when a runner is on second base. "I don't mind doing it this way," Leon said. "The [PitchCom] keys aren't labeled, so it's easy to make a mistake."