PORT CHARLOTTE, FLA. – It's not a pitch-off, it's not a 1-on-1 showdown, the Twins insist. But Monday will be an important day in the competition for spots in the rotation.

Tyler Duffey will travel to Bradenton to face the Pirates, manager Paul Molitor said Friday, while Ricky Nolasco stays in Fort Myers to pitch against the Frederick Keys, the Orioles' Class A affiliate. Along with Tommy Milone's Tuesday start against the Red Sox, those outings will be the final chance for each pitcher to convince Molitor and Terry Ryan that he deserves to get the ball in Kansas City two weeks from now.

Molitor intends to have the 25-man roster settled by the time the Twins break camp Thursday and head to Washington, D.C., for a pair of exhibition games with the Nationals. He wants each reliever to get an inning of work over two days at Nationals Park, so the fifth starter will remain in Fort Myers a couple of extra days in order to make a full start in a minor league game.

Now all that's left is determining who those pitchers are.

Milone seems the safest; after pitching well Thursday against the Marlins, his spring ERA stands at 2.40. But "we haven't made any decision on the back side of the rotation," Ryan said, adding that the team is taking into consideration that Duffey has been working on adding a changeup during the spring.

Sweeney released

Ryan Sweeney got everything he asked for from the Twins this spring — except a job.

The eight-year veteran was released Friday, freed to look for another team with an opening for an outfielder, and he said he was grateful for the 43 plate appearances he received this spring.

"They said, 'We didn't think it would be fair to you to send you to Triple-A and not be able to play you every day, because we've got a lot of guys,' " Sweeney said. "I understood. They gave me a good shot — I got 40 at-bats, that's a good opportunity."

Rookie Max Kepler was also cut from the spring roster and optioned to Class AAA Rochester in order to get playing time at first base and all three outfield spots.

"I've been impressed by his outfield play, compared to a year ago," Molitor said. "Everybody feels now he needs to go play on a regular basis" at Class AAA, where he has yet to play.

Sweeney went 10-for-37 (.270) with four doubles in his quest to be the Twins' fourth outfielder. The early release gives him time to look for another contract before the season opens.

Murphy gets hits

Catcher John Ryan Murphy collected two hits Friday in a game against the Orioles' Class AAA team, the Norfolk Tides, and that surely comes as a relief to the Twins. In major league games, Murphy has gone 2-for-25, an .080 average.

"We've noticed," Molitor said of the slump by Murphy, acquired from the Yankees in November for outfielder Aaron Hicks. "You don't know how much of it is a new team and a new camp. But we like everything else about him. … It hasn't changed our feelings about how we're going to go forward."