Joe Ryan throws a bullpen session in Chicago on Saturday, and the Twins could have him back on the mound in Detroit early next week.
A bullpen session on Saturday at Rate Field will decide how the Minnesota Twins line up their rotation for the rest of this road trip.
Joe Ryan has been on the 15-day injured list with a left glute strain since August 7, but he made a three-inning rehab start for Triple-A St. Paul on Tuesday in Omaha and came out of it healthy.
The next step is a bullpen in front of pitching coach Pete Maki and the pitching group, and if it goes well, his next outing could come in a major league game in Detroit.
Manager Derek Shelton laid out the plan on Wednesday.
"He'll throw his bullpen this weekend. Once his bullpen goes this weekend, we'll have clarity on what the next step is. The most encouraging sign is he walked in today and was in good spirits," Shelton told the Pioneer Press.
Dan Hayes of The Athletic went a step further on his show Thursday and said that if the session goes well, Ryan will probably be pitching in Detroit on Monday or Tuesday, and the Twins have not listed a starter for Monday yet.
What Ryan Gives This Rotation
Ryan was an All-Star again this summer, and he still carries a 3.65 ERA with 138 strikeouts and 27 walks in 125.2 innings.
The problem was the three starts right after the break, when he gave up 16 earned runs in 15.1 innings before the glute strain put him on the shelf.
His fastball sat at 91 to 92 mph in Omaha, down from his season average of 93.4, but Ryan said the heat played a part, and the best sign was that he felt stronger as the outing went along.
The rotation he would rejoin is Taj Bradley, Bailey Ober, Zebby Matthews and Dean Kremer, who came over from Baltimore in a trade on August 1.
Matthews walked into Friday night off the best start of his career against this same White Sox lineup, but he gave up three home runs in five innings in a 4-1 loss and is now 9-9 with a 4.69 ERA on the season.
What It Means for the Wild Card Race
The loss dropped the Twins to 67-74, and they woke up Saturday four and a half games behind Cleveland for the third wild card spot with Toronto, Texas and Baltimore all sitting between them and the Guardians.
With 21 games left, the next eight games will decide whether September means anything, because after two more in Chicago the Twins play three at Detroit starting Monday afternoon and then come home to face Cleveland on Friday.
The Twins have been without one of their two best pitchers since early August, and Byron Buxton is on the injured list too with a right hip impingement, so the rotation is where the real help can come from.
The Twins should bring Ryan back in Detroit on a pitch count rather than send him out for another rehab start, because there are not enough games left to be patient.
