KANSAS CITY, MO. – A pat on the back, then a punch in the gut.

That’s basically what happened to lefthander Buddy Boshers on Sunday when he pitched 2⅓ scoreless innings right after being called up from Class AAA Rochester. After coming through for the Twins in their time of need, Boshers was sent back to Rochester after the game.

“You have to make those hard decisions sometimes when a guy does his job and doesn’t get to stick around,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said.

The Twins decided they needed a reliever who could eat up some innings and replaced Boshers with Nick Tepesch.

It took a few moments for Boshers to come to grips with how baseball works sometimes.

“It was frustrating at first, to be honest with you,” Boshers said. “Once I sat back and evaluated the situation, this is a game but it’s also a business. That’s just the business side of it.

“I was talking to Matt Belisle afterwards, and he said that he went through the same thing a few years ago and gave me some encouraging words. Just control what you can control. So that helped settle things down and look at the big picture of it.”

Boshers is back, as the Twins needed a replacement for Hector Santiago, who is with his family following the death of his grandmother. So Boshers will be with the club for the duration of Santiago’s stay on the league’s bereavement list. Santiago is expected back in time to make his start Tuesday vs. Oakland.

After Boshers pitched so well Sunday, it made sense for him to get a return call. But Molitor also likes how he can match up with Royals hitters with Boshers available.

“They space out their lefthanded hitters,” Molitor said. “That gives you a little more flexibility when you have that third lefty with these guys. If you need to go left-right-left you can do it a little better with a combination of nine relievers than you can with eight.”

Molitor chuckled as he finished his comment. For even he knows that carrying nine relievers is a lot.

In Friday night’s 6-4 victory, the Twins utilized six relievers, with Boshers the first pitcher called after Kyle Gibson was pulled in the sixth inning. Boshers gave up a home run to lefthanded-hitting Brandon Moss to start the seventh, giving Kansas City a 4-2 lead.

Chargois injured

J.T. Chargois, one of the Twins’ group of hard-throwing relief prospects, has been placed on the seven-day disabled list at Class AAA Rochester because of an elbow impingement.

“Should be a short-term situation,” said Brad Steil, the Twins director of minor league operations.

Still, it’s another setback for Chargois, who failed to make the club out of spring training. He’s already missed time because of a shoulder muscle strain and has thrown just 2 ⅔ innings for the Red Wings.

The Twins could use more hard throwers in their bullpen. Chargois, Nick Burdi, Mason Melotakis and Jake Reed can supply such power. Burdi, Melotakis and Reed are at Class AA Chattanooga.

The Twins did promote lefthander Nik Turley to replace Chargois on the roster. Turley, 27, posted a 0.44 ERA in four games, including two starts. He struck out 14 on Tuesday and tied a Southern League record by fanning eight in a row. His fastball ranges from 91-95 miles an hour.

Etc.

• First baseman ByungHo Park, on the disabled list at Rochester because of a strained right hamstring, played five innings in an extended spring training game in Fort Myers, Fla., on Friday.

• The Twins still plan on appealing the one-game suspension Miguel Sano was handed for his role in a bench-clearing incident April 23.