MINNEAPOLIS -- Taylor Rogers has never before been on the injured list in his big league career, which makes it all the more challenging for him to face the prospect of the weeks-long recovery he has ahead of him from the left middle finger sprain he sustained on July 26.

At least he knows now that he likely won't need surgery to correct the issue -- though a return timeline to have him back on a mound this season might be challenging.

"I think it’s going to be tight," Rogers said.

It's tough to put a timetable on Rogers' return, because it will more depend on how his body responds to each stage of the process. First, he'll need to wait for the swelling to go down -- and he's still stuck there. He'll then progress to active and passive movement, then to strengthening the area, and assuming he gets that far with no pain, he would then progress to throwing.

It took him a while to even get that road map. Rogers received three differing opinions from three different doctors in the 10 or so days following his injury, with options ranging from rest to a minor surgical procedure to a more involved surgery.

He underwent another MRI at that point, which gave all three of the doctors confidence that the injury would heal properly without a surgical procedure -- so here he is, though he'll need to find ways to fill all of this newfound downtime that he has, and he's approached teammates like Byron Buxton for suggestions.

"We’ll figure something out," Rogers said. "I’m going to need to get good at this. It’s nice to have the club back and see some guys, watch some baseball in person."

One thing Rogers does know is that he'll have to be deliberate with the recovery, as he learned from others with similar injuries. He's talked to Braves lefty Drew Smyly, who sprained his index finger last August and missed nearly six weeks, and Cleveland right-hander Aaron Civale, who is still out of action following a middle finger sprain sustained on June 23.

Both pitchers told Rogers they hit minor setbacks because they tried to progress too quickly -- and that's something the left-hander will have to remind himself every day.

"I’ve already tried to get in that form of not to be too quick, because obviously, I’m already itching to get back," Rogers said. "But you’ve just got to know to do this right and to try to put that aside and just complete this 100 percent, because I’m already missing the game and missing the guys. Each day, I make sure just to be sure to be slow and cautious with it going forward."

Alcala injury thins already precarious bullpen depth

Jorge Alcala walked into the dugout following his 29-pitch relief outing during Sunday's series finale in Houston and noted that he felt some tightness in his triceps. That issue sent him to the 10-day injured list on Monday, when the Twins recalled right-hander Edgar García from Triple-A St. Paul to take Alcala's roster spot.

"Even with something that could potentially be minor, he’s still going to be down for a little while," manager Rocco Baldelli said. "We’re not going to push him back on the field any time soon until whatever he’s dealing with is resolved."

• How will Twins pitching look the rest of '21?

With Rogers hurt and Hansel Robles gone in a trade to Boston, the Twins already had to push Alcala into a late-innings setup role as part of a thinned leverage bullpen core alongside Tyler Duffey and Alex Colomé.

Who will need to step up in Alcala's absence?

"The bullpen is going to have to step up," Baldelli said. "I don’t think it’s going to be one particular person. I think we’re going to be matching up, we’re going to be making sure we pitch the guys that are rested and able to go."

Caleb Thielbar will likely see continued time in medium-leverage to high-leverage situations, while left-hander Danny Coulombe has slowly climbed into more meaningful situations since the July 30 Trade Deadline, and John Gant already has plenty of solid experience. Juan Minaya, Beau Burrows and García round out the current bullpen depth.

García was claimed off waivers from Cincinnati on July 30 and owns a 7.14 career ERA in 46 appearances for the Phillies, Rays and Reds.

"We’re going to have to call on different guys to get outs in the seventh and eighth innings right now," Baldelli said. "It’s clearly not going to be just one person or even two people."