Kirilloff finishes rehab, optioned to Triple-A

MINNEAPOLIS -- Given how the last few years have gone injury-wise for these Twins, there have been some very unfamiliar situations for manager Rocco Baldelli and his group this season, as they try to map out how to squeeze too many healthy players onto a roster.

Weird, right? Baldelli had to be reminded within one of those discussions not to jinx it.

“I'm going to wait before I talk about that until the season is over,” Baldelli said with a smile.

• Box score: Twins 8, Royals 4

Another such decision has now come to pass, when the club optioned Alex Kirilloff to Triple-A St. Paul following the conclusion of his rehab assignment on Sunday.

With the Saints, he'll have a continued chance to build regular action on his doubly repaired right wrist -- and, frankly, there simply might not have been a place to fit Kirilloff on this Twins roster.

As for Kirilloff's wrist, head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta expressed confidence on Friday that the medical progression is complete -- making this mainly a baseball decision.

“I think we've done what we've needed to do from our side of things,” Paparesta said. “He’s gotten the at-bats he's needed. He's played first base. He's played outfield. ... I think he's proven that he's able to drive the ball again.

“That was the most important thing for us, to be able to see the things he used to be able to do naturally.”

Kirilloff began his rehab assignment on April 11, and with position players capped at 20 days, the Twins needed to make a decision by May on whether to bring him back up to the Majors or otherwise.

Minnesota’s offense hasn’t exactly been lighting the world on fire with consistency -- and this version of Kirilloff might have helped.

Where would he play, though?

Kirilloff provides a left-handed bat who can play both first base and corner outfield, but that overlaps exactly with how the Twins currently employ Joey Gallo, who has been the best hitter on the team.

Minnesota is also stocked up on left-handed corner outfielders, with Max Kepler having raised his OPS to .771 with a strong two weeks, and team RBI and walk leader Trevor Larnach having hit in the heart of the lineup against righties most of the season.

“I'm just not going to talk about a roster squeeze or an at-bat squeeze in any way,” Baldelli said. “Things always work themselves out one way or the other.”

It would be simpler if Byron Buxton weren’t fixed at designated hitter, which could create opportunities in the same lineup for Gallo, Kepler, Larnach and Kirilloff -- but that’s not the Twins’ reality right now. Minnesota could have made room on the active roster by optioning Willi Castro, but that wouldn't solve the core question of where Kirilloff would get playing time.

The simplest solution was just to let Kirilloff keep proving that his wrist can hold up in Triple-A until an injury creates an opportunity. For a team that had to give plenty of at-bats down the stretch to Jermaine Palacios, Mark Contreras and Billy Hamilton in seasons past, this looks to be a better problem to have.

This is much like the situation Bailey Ober found himself at the end of Spring Training -- squeezed off the roster by healthy and productive players ahead of him. But it's not even May yet, and injuries have already created a rotation spot for Ober -- and, as Baldelli said, these things have a way of working themselves out.

“These guys are playing real well, so that's a good thing for our team," Baldelli said. "We will certainly find a way to make it all work."

Entering Sunday, Kirilloff had three homers, a double and two stolen bases with a 1.200 OPS in seven games with the Saints. That’s the hitter he’s been whenever he’s spent time with St. Paul in each of the last three seasons, and clearly, there’s little left at that level for the club’s one-time No. 2 prospect.

That double was hit with authority to deep left field at 101.9 mph. One of those homers was a 383-foot blast to left-center. For the left-handed Kirilloff, those opposite-field rockets have always been a signal that he’s feeling healthy and driving the ball to his potential -- unlike the rolled-over ground balls that became common as he played through wrist troubles.

“When he’s feeling good, and he can put good swings on the ball, the guy’s literally capable of anything,” Baldelli said.