MINNEAPOLIS -- The Twins officially tabbed left-hander Adalberto Mejia to be recalled from Triple-A Rochester to start on Saturday, but weather could be a factor and the club is still deciding who will start on Monday when a sixth starter is necessary because of Thursday's doubleheader.
Mejia, who posted a 3.48 ERA in four starts at Rochester, was tentatively slated to start on Saturday, but manager Paul Molitor made it official on Friday. But the Twins could wait on the weather to make the roster move, as if the game is rained out and there's a doubleheader on Sunday, Mejia could be brought up as the 26th man to start the twin-bill nightcap.
"It's something we'd have to consider," Molitor said.
In that scenario, a rainout and a doubleheader could help the Twins in terms of roster decisions, as they wouldn't need to option another player to make room for Mejia if he were to start a potential Game 2 on Sunday.
They could turn to left-hander Adam Wilk to make a spot start on Monday or recall right-hander Kyle Gibson from Triple-A Rochester, but Gibson is scheduled to start for the Red Wings on Saturday. The Twins would also have to send down a player for Gibson, and don't have any obvious candidates unless they want to option first baseman Kennys Vargas and return to a 13-man pitching staff in the short term.
Molitor said if Saturday's game is rained out, he'd rather have a doubleheader on Sunday with Thursday's off-day looming instead of hosting one the next time the Royals come to town from Sept. 1-3. He heard reports about Saturday's forecast, but Molitor remains hopeful they'll find a window to play.
"I know it's out there," he said. "I don't know if it'll be as bad as the other day. I'm not sure if there are breaks in it. I hope so. We'd have to bounce back Sunday or push it back later in the summer and we already have three lined up."