CLEVELAND -- The final test in Alex Kirilloff’s recovery has arrived -- more quickly than expected.

Just five days ago, the Twins optioned Kirilloff to keep him on the Triple-A St. Paul roster following the conclusion of his rehab assignment, which came after a second consecutive season cut short by surgery last August on his troublesome right wrist. But before the Twins' 2-0 win over the Guardians on Friday, they called him back up -- and this time, they hope it’s for good.

“It feels a lot better,” Kirilloff said. “I feel like it’s in a better spot than what it has been in the past. Definitely really optimistic with how everything’s feeling right now. Not to say that it's not going to take a lot of work and continued preparation and recovery and the ins and outs. Just have to take care of it.”

The Twins got the opportunity to call up Kirilloff sooner than expected when they had to place Caleb Thielbar on the 15-day IL with a right oblique strain. That allowed them to get around the 10 days they would normally need to wait before they could recall Kirilloff after optioning him to the Minors.

Regardless of the circumstances that led to Kirilloff’s return, Friday’s flurry of moves signaled a rapid change of mindset pertaining to the onetime No. 2 prospect’s ability to fit in on this roster -- especially since the Twins’ reason for optioning him a few days ago was that there wouldn’t be consistent playing time for him at the MLB level, and he might benefit from seeing everyday action in the Minors.

But perhaps the Twins felt their offense simply needed the jolt, or that Kirilloff was very clearly the best candidate for the job. They clearly felt that the move was worth making, to the extent that they optioned Trevor Larnach, the team’s co-RBI leader, to create playing time for Kirilloff.

“I think we wanted to give him a little more time to settle in, make sure he’s still feeling good and everything was going very well, which I think is the case,” manager Rocco Baldelli said. “You hope that he can give you a jolt, give the lineup a jolt.”

It appears as though Kirilloff could step in as the club’s everyday first baseman -- perhaps platooning with Donovan Solano against left-handed starters -- with Joey Gallo moving from first to Larnach’s vacated post in left field.

After the quality of the Twins’ at-bats seemed to pick up late last homestand, the lineup struggled mightily to put together runs against an often ineffective White Sox pitching staff during the first three games of this road trip. Larnach went 0-for-9 with eight strikeouts and a walk during that series in Chicago and hit .173 with a .573 OPS in his last 25 games, dating back to April 7.

In the meantime, Kirilloff continued to crush Triple-A pitching following a late ramp-up for the season. His preparation was slowed by the uncertainty around his recovery from the very rare surgery, which shortened the ulna bone in his right arm in a last-ditch effort to finally resolve the right wrist issues that have hampered him since he first established himself as a big league regular in 2021.

Kirilloff hit .316/.435/.605 with three homers, two doubles, six walks and two stolen bases in 10 games for Triple-A St. Paul, with head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta saying last week that Kirilloff’s wrist, at last, seemed to no longer hamper him from driving the ball to all fields in the way he can when he’s at his very best.

So what will it take for Kirilloff to get regular playing time while staying healthy and pain-free?

“I would say a good bit [of maintenance on the wrist],” Kirilloff said. “I think just kind of understanding how things are connected. Even my shoulder and chest down kind of affects everything going on in the wrist. Kind of staying on top of things that are connected to that area, too, has been an important piece that I’ve been paying more attention to.”

Most recently, Kirilloff played three consecutive games from May 2-4, seemingly signaling that he’s ready for close to everyday action at the highest level.

“I can’t tell you he’s going to play every single day; he might need a day here or there, but I’m not going to treat him differently than anyone else here,” Baldelli said.

When Kirilloff is healthy, there has always been little doubt that he should be a high-floor, middle-of-the-order bat for years to come -- but he’s never been able to fully show that, due to his wrist holding back his performance in both ‘21 and ‘22. In both years, he hoped injections and rest would keep the wrist healthy, but both times, the pain returned and he eventually needed season-ending surgery.

All of that makes this a pivotal year in Kirilloff’s career.

“I think it’s getting really close to [feeling like it did before the problems began],” Kirilloff said.

Will he finally be pain-free and show the baseball world the exemplary tools that made him such a can’t-miss hitting prospect? Or will the wrist pain return for a third straight year, even following a surgery that had previously represented the worst-case scenario and a last-ditch attempt to steer his career and development back on track?

It appears that it’s time to find out.