MINNEAPOLIS -- There's the Miguel Sanó who energizes his teammates with his raucous energy and mighty swings of the bat, carrying the offense for weeks at a time. There's also the Miguel Sanó who loses his timing for other stretches and endures massive slumps at the plate that leave the Twins scratching their heads.

Throughout the big man's recent career, the Twins haven't necessarily understood what flips the switch from one to the other, or what helps the slugger unlock the former version of himself -- and that's the version the club needs if he's going to force himself into consistent playing time on an increasingly crowded roster.

After a lengthy absence, Sanó will get the opportunity to see if he can make that impact, starting Tuesday in Milwaukee.

The Twins activated Sanó from the 60-day IL on Monday night following the completion of his recovery from a torn meniscus in his left knee and the subsequent rehab assignment at the Rookie level and in Triple-A, putting the polarizing slugger in position to return to the field for the first time since April 30.

"The expectations for him are very simple," manager Rocco Baldelli said. "They’re to work hard and to be ready to go when his opportunities are in front of him. Again, he may get at-bats in different ways. He may get at-bats with runs of games. He may not be out there for a couple games. He may get out there. He may pinch-hit. He may be pinch-hit for."

In corresponding moves, the Twins optioned fourth outfielder Gilberto Celestino to Triple-A St. Paul and transferred left-handed reliever Danny Coulombe to the 60-day IL.

The organization took its time with Sanó’s rehab assignment, with no clear answer as to where he could find playing time and no real urgency to rush him back to the Majors considering the acclimation period he has often required to get to the productive, dangerous version of himself.

There was seemingly no such adjustment period this time, as Sanó hit .333/.422/.795 (1.127 OPS) with five homers, three doubles, 12 strikeouts and six walks across the 12 games of his rehab assignment, including seven with Triple-A St. Paul. That's a far cry from the .093/.231/.148 hitter who had been 5-for-54 in 17 big league games before his injury -- and the Twins will have to wait and see if this blistering start in the Minors will translate to the Majors.

"I'm not a machine -- it took some time to go out there and see guys, take some live [BP], and hit some balls," Sanó said. "But I feel good now. ... I've been playing a lot of games down there, hit some bombs, hit some line drives, all that stuff. See good pitches and try to hit good pitches."

If it translates immediately, that would mean a lot to this team. The Twins' offense has been a top unit in aggregate but has experienced several periods of inconsistency over the last several weeks, and Sanó's raw power can lead to game-changing moments in the blink of an eye.

He has hit 25 or more homers in four of the last six seasons, finishing above league average, per OPS+, in all but one campaign throughout his career. He had an .847 OPS in the second half of last season, following a .939 mark in the second half of '19. So there's precedent for his second-half performance. The question, then, is whether this extended absence will impact his ability to get to that level in the two months and change remaining this season.

The other major question is where Sanó fits on this roster. When he went down with the injury, he was the team's starting first baseman. But in his absence, the three players who platooned to fill his place -- Luis Arraez, Alex Kirilloff and Jose Miranda -- have all hit well, with Arraez and Miranda placing among the best hitters on the team in that time.

"[Sanó's playing time] might not be every day -- it might not be what he’s probably done before, but I talked to him about it and he’ll be ready to go regardless of what’s to come," Baldelli said. "But he’s going to play."

Between Kirilloff, Miranda, Arraez, Gio Urshela and now Sanó, the corner infield picture on this roster is exceptionally crowded, though Kirilloff should now start seeing more time in the outfield in Celestino's absence.

If Kirilloff becomes a more consistent outfielder, that could leave room for three of the other four in the lineup between the two corner infield spots and designated hitter, where Gary Sánchez should now be a less frequent presence due to Ryan Jeffers' thumb fracture.

It's probably safe to assume that the Twins will try to play Miranda, Urshela and Sanó as often as possible against left-handed pitchers, while Kirilloff, Arraez and Miranda have all become regulars against right-handers. It remains to be seen where Sanó would fit into that mix -- but he insists that he's excited about the emergence of these youngsters and didn't worry about his place on the team.

"I'm so happy," Sanó said. "It's like me when I came to the big leagues in 2017. I had somebody playing in front of me, and they gave me the opportunity and they gave opportunities to those guys. I was so happy because they've been doing a great job with the team. Arraez, he made the All-Star Game and I'm proud of him because I know where he came from. Miranda, that's an opportunity. That's baseball. That's part of the game. Nothing that I was worried about."