White hesitant about playing the field

By Melissa Rosenberg, Star Tribune

Last update: July 22, 2007 - 11:06 PM

The decision to play Rondell White at designated hitter is a twist on recent history for the Twins. White, who has been on the disabled list since April 5 because of a strained right calf muscle, told team officials Sunday he'd prefer to return to the team as the DH, not in left field.

When White signed as a free agent in December 2005, it was with the intention that he would be the everday DH.

The DH experiment didn't work. White hit .194 with 34 strikeouts in 54 games. The team moved him to left field, where his hitting improved to .328.

"Right now he said he's a little more comfortable [playing as the DH] than he is playing in the field, which is a reversal," manager Ron Gardenhire said. "I'm going to see what is the best way to use him and don't kill him."

Speedy delivery

Luis Castillo, who hails from the Dominican Republic, needed his resident visa to travel to Toronto, where the Twins begin a three-game road trip tonight.

One slight problem: Castillo left the visa at his Miami home.

So Castillo had a friend fly to the Twin Cities with the visa on Sunday. Castillo planned to pick it up at the airport before boarding the team charter.

Castillo said he invited his friend to spend a couple days in his Minneapolis apartment, but the friend had to get back to Miami.

"He's a good friend of mine," Castillo said. Good thing, he added, because "I don't want to go to [Class AAA] Rochester for a couple days."

The Twins had been reminding players since spring training to have their passports and other documentation ready for this road trip.

Redmond on the mend

Catcher Mike Redmond said his injured finger was progressing nicely. He injured the knuckle on his left middle finger during Thursday's game, but said he "popped it back in and kept playing."

The injury prevented him from gripping a bat properly for several days, but he said batting practice before Sunday's game showed major improvement.

"It felt a lot better swinging the bat [Sunday], much better than the last couple of days," he said. "I should be good to go in another day or so."

Perkins update

Lefthander Glen Perkins, on the DL since May 22 because of a strained left shoulder, will fly to Fort Myers, Fla., today to begin a 24-day rehab program. A recent setback in his recovery forced the team to create a strict, regimented plan that coaches and trainers will force him to stick to.

"I think he pushed the envelope himself and wanted to get going quicker," Gardenhire said. "So this way, rather than him doing a hostile takeover with some of our young trainers down there ... we're going to do it our way now."

Etc.

• The Twins set an attendance record for a 10-game homestand, drawing 342,787. Their previous high was 336,668 in August 1992.

• Shortstop Jason Bartlett has 19 of the Twins' 47 errors this season and four in the past six games.

• Canada native Justin Morneau is batting .043 (1-for-23) at Rogers Centre heading into tonight's game at Toronto. "Hopefully I can change that," he said. "It's always exciting when we go there. There's a little more attention made. I've got to go out and try to win games, try not to get too excited and stay within myself."

Melissa Rosenberg • mrosenberg@startribune.com

Recent Twins stories

Yankees outfielder Johnny Damon wants to come back, but will explore other options - July 22, 2007

Yankees outfielder Johnny Damon wants to come back, but will explore other options - Johnny Damon soaked it all in as he shared a float with first-timers Nick Swisher and Jerry Hairston Jr. for the New York Yankees' championship parade through the Canyon of Heroes on Friday. The whole scene made him a little wistful. More