Pelfrey set to return, Twins designate Walters

MINNEAPOLIS -- After Thursday's 9-5 loss to the Yankees, their fifth in a row, the Twins designated right-hander P.J. Walters for assignment to make room for right-hander Mike Pelfrey, who will be activated from the disabled list.

"Somebody was going to have to go," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "We like those guys out there. P.J. has thrown some pretty good ballgames for us. He actually pitched pretty well. He had a couple of rough starts in a row, and [Wednesday] was a good start. He kind of ran out of gas, ran into a block there at the end … but he's thrown good for us."

When Pelfrey initially went on the disabled list, on June 23 because of a sore back, the Twins brought up right-hander Kyle Gibson. But Pelfrey was quickly on the mend, making a rehab start for Class A Cedar Rapids on Monday, signaling to the Twins that there would soon be an odd man out.

Walters started Wednesday's 3-2 loss to the Yankees and gave up three runs on four hits in five innings. He struck out three and walked three in defeat, dropping his record to 2-5. In his two previous starts, Walters worked a combined 3 2/3 innings, allowing 12 runs on seven hits. His ERA over those two games was 29.45.