Duensing returns, at Henn's expense

By LA VELLE E. NEAL III, Star Tribune

Last update: July 3, 2009 - 12:38 AM

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The Twins tweaked their bullpen by outrighting lefthander Sean Henn back to Class AAA Rochester and recalling lefthander Brian Duensing on Thursday.

Henn gave up two runs in his Twins debut May 19 before recording six consecutive scoreless appearances. The Twins then tried to give him a bigger role in the bullpen, but he had an 0-3 record with a 14.54 ERA in his past seven appearances, and lefthanders are hitting .350 against him.

"We need to get a little better left-on-left," Twins General Manager Bill Smith said.

In being outrighted, Henn had to clear waivers and was taken off the 40-man roster. Since it's the second time this year Henn has been outrighted, he can reject the assignment and become a free agent.

Smith told Henn that they want him to remain in the organization. Henn was expected to take a couple of days to make his decision.

Duensing, 26, made the team out of spring training but was sent to Rochester on April 13 after giving up two runs on two hits in his only appearance. He was 4-6 with a 4.66 ERA in 13 starts for Rochester.

He gave up one run over eight innings in his last start Friday but posted a 5.46 ERA in June.

The Twins still have a 11-man pitching staff.

Offer to Sano

The Twins have made an offer to Dominican infield prospect Miguel Angel Sano, according to a source with knowledge of the talks.

But the offer, believed to be around $3 million, is contingent on Sano proving that he's actually 16 years old -- which has become a big hurdle.

The Twins, Pittsburgh and Baltimore have expressed interest in Sano, an infield prospect with power potential. But it was the Twins who recently asked Major League Baseball investigators to help verify his age. That investigation remains ongoing.

Thursday was the first day teams could sign international players. If Sano lied about his age, he won't be allowed to sign with a club for a year. He would still be a prospect, but not command the bonus he could get if he were 16.

In addition to Sano, the Twins are on the trail of several other top Latin American prospects. Smith wouldn't comment on the players they are interested in but expressed optimism that the club will break through this year and sign some of the top players.

"We're pursuing a lot of different players and we're pursuing some high-profile players," Smith said. "We have put a lot of time in over the last two to three years, This is one of our bullets: To get strong in the international market. We've had interest in some high-profile players in the past and haven't been able to finish them off."

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