ARLINGTON -- Sitting in the relatively foreign environs of the visitors' dugout at Globe Life Park, Twins general manager Thad Levine summed up his first trip back to the place he worked for 11 seasons with the Rangers as "emotional."
Levine, 45, worked as assistant GM for the Rangers under GM Jon Daniels from 2005 to 2016.
"I feel like there are more people here who I owe things to, not only as a front-office person, but as a man," Levine said. "That's not lost on me. I don't think this will abate. Every time I come here, it will be special.
"It's a ton of extremely close friends. I feel like this was my family for 11 years, and it was really the most formative years of my career. I started a family here, built a team that ultimately went to two World Series, got a chance to play in a lot of playoff games, and I really cut my teeth in my career."
Levine has much admiration for Daniels.
"There's no other word to describe him -- I think he's like a brother," Levine said of Daniels. "I've never had one, but I feel as if I do now. If anything, he was a mentor for me while I was here, and that has not changed while I've taken this new role. … He's one of the guys I've stayed in close contact with as I've tried to navigate some of the things I know he's had to deal with over his career. I got a chance to witness them while I was here, but it's quite a different thing when you have more decision-making power."
Twins manager Paul Molitor called Levine a "high-end communicator in intelligence," adding that he was starting to better understand the GM's humor a bit as well, day by day.
"You've just got to be prepared; you never know when it's coming," said Molitor.
Worth noting
• Left-handed reliever Ryan O'Rourke will be examined by Dr. Keith Meister, who is also the Rangers' team physician, on Tuesday to determine whether he'll need to undergo Tommy John surgery on his elbow. He had discomfort during a Spring Training game in late March and hasn't been able to return.
"I just really want a direct route for my recovery," O'Rourke said. "The last couple days, it's been up in the air. I just want to know what the way back is."
• Right-hander Nick Tepesch was called up from Triple-A Rochester on Monday, replacing Player Page for Buddy Boshers, who was sent down. Tepesch has spent the majority of his career with the Rangers, with 42 of 43 career appearances coming for Texas. He was 1-1 with a 2.00 ERA in three starts for Rochester before the Twins purchased his contract. O'Rourke was moved to the 60-day disabled list to make room for Tepesch on the 40-man roster. Molitor said Tepesch could be available out of the bullpen as a long reliever Monday.