Twins reliever Jorge Alcala, healthy again, making his case for spot in bullpen

FORT MYERS, FLA. - As several relievers compete for the final spot or two in the Twins bullpen, Jorge Alcala stands out with arguably the most electric pitch mix in the group.

He slapped his hand into his glove when he struck out St. Louis Cardinals infielder Jared Young with a 90 mile-per-hour slider Wednesday, one of his three strikeouts in two scoreless innings at Hammond Stadium. His fastball topped out at 98 mph.

After two injury-plagued seasons, Alcala is showing why the Twins have been willing to keep him on their 40-man roster.

“We’ve seen a lot of guys come back from a lot of different things to perform out there on the mound and succeed,” Twins Manager Rocco Baldelli said. “I see nothing standing in his way at this point. He just has to get back into good, midseason productive form. When he does that, he’ll help our major league team.”

Alcala was sidelined for most of last season with a forearm strain, and he didn’t return in time to put himself in serious contention for a spot on the postseason roster. He pitched in the Dominican Winter League, which helped him prepare for this year’s camp.

“A lot of it is regaining his feel for his off-speed pitches and his execution,” Baldelli said.

* Anthony DeSclafani, who threw a 25-pitch live batting practice session Monday, said he’s scheduled to pitch in a minor league game Saturday. DeSclafani was slowed by elbow soreness near the beginning of camp and has yet to pitch in a Grapefruit League game.

* Twins reliever Brock Stewart returned to his home in Charlotte earlier this week as his wife, Chrissie, delivered their second son, Cal, on Sunday. “Cherishing these first few days as a family of four,” Stewart wrote on Instagram.

* Kyle Farmer, who earned a $1,000 prize for winning the team’s egg toss competition with Royce Lewis, is buying lunch for players and staff in big-league camp Thursday by bringing a taco food truck to the ballpark.