CLEVELAND -- The Twins' roster situation had become increasingly fraught in the closing days of the first half, and though the All-Star break gave some of their players needed time to recover from their injuries, Eddie Rosario was still not ready to be reinstated from the 10-day injured list on Friday.
Rosario did some running and swinging as part of the club's optional workout at Progressive Field on Thursday, and manager Rocco Baldelli characterized the return of his starting left fielder as "very close." Rosario is expected to be tested with activities closer to game speed over the coming days and likely won't need a Minor League rehab assignment before his return.
"Any time he's off the field for an extended period of time, he's not happy about it," Baldelli said. "I want him to want to be on the field -- that's great. I think, also, we want to make sure he's ready for the long haul, and that when we bring him back, we're not having to check on him and make sure he's doing OK."
Rosario has been sidelined since June 27 with a left ankle sprain that was sustained as he made a turn around first base. The Twins are 4-6 since Rosario's injury. For his part, the 27-year-old Rosario said that his workout went well and that he is just waiting for the go-ahead from team staff to get back on the field.
"Just waiting for the team," Rosario said. "Whenever they believe I’m ready to play, then I'll go."
Baldelli cautioned that Rosario had been similarly optimistic when the ankle was first injured, which led in part to the initial hopes that the outfielder might avoid a stint on the injured list altogether.
"I think we got to a point where we realized that the conversations didn't probably match up with the shape that his ankle was actually in, and therefore, we had to make a decision to take him off the field," Baldelli said. "For a little while, I think we were going to try to play it day-to-day and see where that got us, and that works out sometimes."
Minnesota did get some roster help on Friday, though, when Blake Parker was reinstated from the paternity list after the right-hander had been sidelined for seven days while he and his wife, Jordan, welcomed their second son, Casimir. Parker took the roster spot of Devin Smeltzer, who was optioned to Rochester following his extended relief appearance on Sunday.
Jake Odorizzi is also expected to be activated from the injured list on Saturday after sitting out the minimum 10 days with a blister on his right middle finger. The All-Star right-hander has already been announced as the Twins' probable starter in that second game of the series.
Twins understand importance of series against Indians
Though the Twins saw their 11 1/2-game lead in the American League Central dwindle to 5 1/2 games by the All-Star break, they made sure to keep things in perspective by noting that they have still played around .500 baseball while many of their important hitters dealt with injuries. And if someone had asked them about a 5 1/2-game divisional edge entering the season, they would have been fairly satisfied with that.
But still, they understand the magnitude of this weekend's three-game series against their chief rivals for the Central crown.
"It's going to be really important," Jorge Polanco said. "We know how important it is to go into those games against the Indians. And as we come back to those games, it’s going to be the key to the rest of the season to beat the Indians in [the] series."
The Indians are 21-8 in their last 29 games and entered play Friday riding a season-high six-game winning streak. Though the Twins are still without the services of Rosario and C.J. Cron, who is dealing with right thumb inflammation, this series offers them a chance to reverse the fortunes of their slow finish to the first half, especially with a tough homestand against the Mets, A's and Yankees on the horizon.
"That is a big series to start the second half and a string of games for us that we're going to need to be healthy for and going to need to play well," Kyle Gibson said. "Probably these first 10 games after the break are going to be pretty important."
Worth noting
• Cody Allen was promoted to Triple-A Rochester on Thursday following four scoreless appearances in Class A Advanced Fort Myers. Allen was signed to a Minor League contract on June 24 following his release by the Angels and struck out four while allowing three hits in his four innings for the Miracle.
• The Twins released right-hander Chase De Jong on Friday. De Jong, who arrived in a trade from the Mariners last season, had a 9.73 ERA in 45 1/3 innings with Triple-A Rochester this year. He had a 5.30 ERA in five games (four starts) at the Major League level for the Twins in parts of 2018 and '19.
Fernando Romero was activated from the Minor League injured list to take De Jong's roster spot with the Red Wings.
• Brent Rooker, the Twins' No. 7 prospect per MLB Pipeline, started the Triple-A All-Star Game in left field on Wednesday and went 1-for-3 with a double and a walk in the International League's 9-3 loss to the Pacific Coast League. Rooker, who could be a trade candidate at this season's July 31 Trade Deadline, is hitting .286/.404/.545 with 14 homers and 16 doubles in 63 games for Triple-A Rochester.