MINNEAPOLIS -- The product on the field on Wednesday in Minneapolis barely resembled a real baseball game in many ways.

Only three batters rotated through plate appearances each inning in place of a customary nine-man lineup. During the bottom of the third inning, a line drive by Nelson Cruz scattered a crowd of catchers, pitchers and a coach playing long toss on the field behind center fielder Byron Buxton. For whatever reason, advance scout Frankie Padulo played left field in the fourth inning. (He caught all three balls hit his way.)

But who cares about the weirdness? It was finally some approximation of organized baseball, and it was fun for everyone involved.

"Just being able to get back out on the field, as we discussed, putting baseball pants on, making it a place where the guys can go out and enjoy themselves and have fun and just worry about playing baseball in a normal atmosphere, that's helpful and positive and probably sparks a little bit of positive emotion for all the guys out there on the field," manager Rocco Baldelli said. "They had fun with it."

The Twins played four innings of simulated action with a full defense behind the day's pitchers -- right-handers José Berríos and Randy Dobnak -- and lingered afterward for live batting practice from Jhoulys Chacín, Cory Gearrin and Caleb Thielbar.

The quality of play was quite high from the pitchers' side, at least, as Berríos and Dobnak traded zeros for four shutout innings apiece against the most formidable hitters in Twins camp. Berríos allowed three hits in those four frames, striking out five and walking one as he threw 38 of his 63 pitches for strikes. Dobnak, efficient as always, only needed 49 pitches -- 36 strikes -- to navigate four innings of two-hit ball with four strikeouts and no walks.

"Finally, we are free again," Berríos said. "We all were waiting for this moment to be back on the field playing baseball."

Eddie Rosario accounted for a pair of singles in the second inning, while veterans Cruz and Josh Donaldson both beat the shift for singles to right field. In another promising sign, a completely healthy Buxton -- in only his second day of workouts following his late arrival to camp -- smashed a line-drive double to left field in his second at-bat off Berríos.

Twins experimenting with robo umps during Summer Camp

Poor Colby Suggs. The Twins' advance scout wasn't actually umpiring from the stands behind home plate; he was merely the conduit for ball-strike information.

He caught plenty of grief from hitters and catchers all the same.

Donaldson stared him down after several calls. Mitch Garver took to yelling out his own strike and ball calls following each pitch. Alex Avila even threw a baseball at Suggs (hidden safely behind a net) in joking frustration after a borderline pitch was called a ball. None of this was Suggs' fault, though. Technology was really behind it all, as the Twins experimented with a "robot umpire" on Wednesday, with TrackMan calling balls and strikes for the duration of the intrasquad game.

"It seemed like the plate kind of shrunk up a little bit side-to-side, kind of lengthened out up and down," Baldelli said. "I think you see some of the breaking balls catch the bottom of the zone, too, in the front. But you definitely see different things and definitely get some reaction from the hitters especially when certain pitches are called, and frankly not called from the pitcher’s perspective."

Baldelli said the Twins used the automated technology not necessarily as preparation for anything imminent, but simply to give both hitters and pitchers a taste for what a strike zone could look like under such circumstances. They plan to try it again in Thursday's intrasquad game.

Twins Clubhouse Store to reopen on Friday

The Twins Clubhouse Store will reopen for in-store shopping on Friday morning, with only two weeks remaining until the anticipated start of the regular season. The store will be open from 10 a.m.–5 p.m. CT Tuesdays through Saturdays and until first pitch on game days.

Staff and patrons will be required to wear masks in the store, with social distancing and traffic flow restrictions also enforced by the organization. Capacity will be capped at 40 people, and hand sanitizer will be available to guests. Only credit card payments will be accepted at this time.

Two more nondrafted free agents sign with Twins

The Twins officially announced the signings of right-handed pitcher John Stankiewicz and shortstop Willy Diaz Vasquez, a pair of nondrafted free agents. Stankiewicz, 21, was the 2019 Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Year after going 8-4 with a 1.47 ERA in 92 innings as a sophomore at Fordham. His career 2.00 ERA across three seasons marks the lowest in school history.

Diaz Vasquez, 20, attended Lethbridge College in Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, while playing baseball for Prairie Baseball Academy. He shares his hometown of San Pedro de Macoris in the Dominican Republic with Jorge Polanco and Miguel Sanó.

Stankiewicz and Diaz Vasquez join left-hander Lucas Sweany as the three nondrafted free-agent signees officially announced by the team.