PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- Rookie left-hander Lewis Thorpe returned to Twins camp on Sunday following an absence of roughly nine days for personal reasons. But it remains to be seen how quickly he can be ramped back up this spring to participate in the open competition for the fifth spot in the starting rotation.

Thorpe said he stayed around Fort Myers during his absence and did not return to his native Australia, but a source close to the situation said that Thorpe's parents flew to Florida to be with their son. The Twins did not yet have a timeline for Thorpe's participation in game action, and they expected pitching coach Wes Johnson to evaluate the southpaw's progress on Sunday.

"Just to clear my head," Thorpe said. "I was missing my family a bit, and I was going through a little rough time. Everything's good now. I'm ready to participate and be on the field and be happy and just be myself and be with the team."

Thorpe, manager Rocco Baldelli and president of baseball operations Derek Falvey all declined to go into specifics about the nature of Thorpe's absence. Baldelli said that the sequence of events initiated with Thorpe asking for the club's help with the "personal situation," and that the 24-year-old made the decision to take time away.

"It was tough because I wanted to be on the field," Thorpe said. "I wanted to be with the guys, but you know, I had to go, I had to make sure to get myself right to make sure I could perform on the field and make sure my body’s healthy and everything. So yeah, I’m feeling good now and ready to go."

Baldelli could not commit to an answer when asked about Thorpe's ability to be ready for Opening Day given the disruption in his routine. Thorpe said that he had been playing catch and throwing some flat-ground sessions while he took time away, but Baldelli acknowledged there should be some ramp-up time to get back into the throwing program and bullpen sessions.

The other candidates for the fifth starter role -- Devin Smeltzer, Randy Dobnak and Jhoulys Chacín -- have all pitched at least twice since the start of spring play. (One of Dobnak's starts was unofficial because it came in an exhibition against the University of Minnesota.) Smeltzer, Dobnak and Chacín have already been stretched out beyond two innings in their most recent outings, including a three-inning relief appearance from Chacín in the Twins' 8-2 loss to the Rays on Sunday.

"[Thorpe is] a little behind [his schedule], so we'll kind of have to restart and reset that to go forward," Falvey said. "We'll assess [it]."

Thorpe was recently listed as the No. 10 prospect in the Twins' organization by MLB Pipeline in their 2020 preseason rankings and is considered to have the highest ceiling of the rookie candidates for that rotation vacancy -- himself, Smeltzer and Dobnak.

Thorpe had the roughest stat line among those rookies in his Major League cameo last season (6.18 ERA in 27 2/3 innings) but had the best strikeout rate of the trio, punching out 10.1 hitters per nine innings.

"I think he proved to himself and us that he can compete very well at the Major League level," Baldelli said. "He's a guy we think very highly of, and he's put himself on track to be a major part of this team this year. The stuff is very good. His ability to lock in last year was overall pretty good."