Impending 13-pitcher limit causing headaches for Twins

PHOENIX — Rocco Baldelli hopes the pitchers on his staff are not thinking about whether their roster spot is safe while they're on the field. But it's human nature to do so.

"They know this is coming. Guys pay attention," Baldelli said of MLB's implementation, beginning on Monday, of a 13-pitcher limit on the active roster, a rule that will subtract a pitcher from the Twins' 26-man roster. "I know these are the things that people think about, but our guys do a pretty good job of not worrying about things like that and letting it affect their performance."

Tyler Thornburg faced 10 hitters on Friday and retired eight of them, though a single to the first batter he faced, Arizona's Jake Hager, allowed a run to score. Tyler Duffey retired all three Diamondbacks he faced in the eighth inning, needing only nine pitches, though he had allowed seven runs in his previous 3 2/3 innings.

Jharel Cotton, Trevor Megill, even Dylan Bundy, who took the mound Saturday after the Twins skipped his start last week — are these guys pitching for their jobs?

Not necessarily, Baldelli said. One outing, good or bad, won't determine someone's fate. Long-term implications factor into roster decisions far more than the last pitch you threw.

"Just execute your pitches, that's about all you can do," Baldelli said. "All our guys are doing a pretty good job for us. They're all going to have an opportunity to pitch going forward."

But one of them will lose that opportunity, at least temporarily, on Monday — not to mention the adjustment that must be made when Josh Winder returns from a shoulder injury, which could be as soon as Tuesday.

Baldelli would prefer that the Twins be allowed to decide how best to structure their own roster. But that's not how this league works, he said.

"It's another prime example of us on the field just having to be open to making adjustments and dealing with things," he said. "I would prefer to have the option of having 14 pitchers on the staff if we choose. But we can't choose. There's a lot of things we'd like to do that we can't. So we'll just deal with it."

Emmanuel Rodriguez, a teenage center fielder who signed with the Twins for $2.7 million in 2019, was having perhaps the best season by any minor leaguer in Minnesota's system this season.

Until Tuesday.

Rodriguez tore the meniscus in his right knee while sliding into a base a week ago, and on Tuesday, surgeons in Minneapolis repaired the damage. The injury will keep Rodriguez from finishing what was already a remarkable season.

"There's a chance he can return for instructional league" in October, said assistant General Manager Jeremy Zoll. "But it's a tough blow, for sure."

Rodriguez, a Dominican who turned 19 in February, had an incredible .492 on-base percentage when he was hurt, having drawn 57 walks in 47 games for low-Class A Fort Myers. With five doubles, three triples and nine home runs, his .551 slugging percentage gave him a 1.043 OPS.