Continued: No word on disciplinary action against Gardenhire

DETROIT — Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said Saturday that he had yet to hear from the commissioner's office regarding Friday's comments toward umpire Hunter Wendelstedt.

Of course, Gardenhire added, he hadn't been answering his phone.

A commissioner's office spokesman said the process would likely take a few days. Any time there's an ejection, the umpires file an incident report, which is reviewed by baseball's disciplinary czar, Bob Watson.

Watson handed Gardenhire a one-game suspension after a heated exchange with Wendelstedt on July 18, 2005.

After getting ejected by Wendelstedt that day for arguing balls and strikes, Gardenhire told reporters, "I expect more than that from a major league umpire, especially from a guy who comes from a baseball family. His father, Harry, was a great umpire, but I have no respect for Hunter anymore."

On Friday, Gardenhire said Wendelstedt has "an attitude," adding that he made a lot of bad calls but "didn't probably think so because he's god, as umpires go." Wendelstedt's response included an invitation for Gardenhire to attend his umpiring school to learn what a balk is.

On Saturday, Gardenhire said, "If he'll agree to take the classes over again, I'll go with him."

Rotation bubble

The Twins don't want to announce their rotation plans until they can speak with Francisco Liriano, who is tending to a family matter in Minnesota. Gardenhire said Liriano, Glen Perkins and Anthony Swarzak were on the bubble for two rotation spots, adding that reliever Brian Duensing is making a case, too.

Scott Baker will pitch today, with Nick Blackburn scheduled for Tuesday and Carl Pavano for Friday. So the Twins are debating who will pitch Wednesday and Thursday against Kansas City.

Gardenhire might have tipped his hand slightly, when he mentioned concerns about Liriano's innings count in his second year back from Tommy John surgery. Liriano pitched 199 innings last year between the minors and majors and has racked up another 118 this year.

"When you're trying to figure out who gives you the best chance to win, you're not sure," Gardenhire said. "Liriano seems to be probably better than the others, but he's had his struggles, and we don't want to push him with anything because of his surgery. So that all plays into it."

Perkins, who had been scheduled to start Saturday but was bumped by newcomer Pavano, pitched a scoreless ninth inning in the 11-0 victory over Detroit, Perkins' first relief outing this year.

Draft update

Randy Rowley, the agent for Twins first-round pick Kyle Gibson, said he would prefer not to comment on negotiations, out of respect to the process. Teams have until Aug. 17 to sign draft picks.

Rowley did say the stress fracture in Gibson's right forearm has healed. "He's throwing, he's healthy, he's 100 percent," Rowley said.

The Twins signed 15th-round draft pick Steven Liddle, an outfielder from Vanderbilt and the nephew of Twins bench coach Steve Liddle. He will report to Elizabethton.

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