Michael Tonkin part of Twins' pitching patchwork for doubleheader in Boston

BOSTON – The Twins have decided, tentatively, who to bring in to fill a pending hole in the starting rotation: nobody.

The plan requires a little bit of good luck, some fast healing and a well-rested bullpen. "We're still juggling a little bit," manager Paul Molitor said.

Reliever Michael Tonkin will be the Twins' 26th man Wednesday, eligible to pitch under an MLB rule that allows teams to add a player for doubleheaders. They might have selected Tommy Milone instead, but he pitched Saturday for Class AAA Rochester and would be on short rest.

Instead, Molitor will hope his bullpen isn't overworked by playing two games in a day — Tonkin can help with that — which would allow him to get by with a bullpen day Thursday or Friday, with J.R. Graham making a spot start.

"He's obviously an option, after being stretched out the way he has in his two appearances, and the rest he's had," Molitor said of Graham, who pitched three innings when Ricky Nolasco was forced to leave Sunday's game because of an ankle injury. "He's shown he can throw 60 pitches effectively. If we needed him to start, he could probably go a little bit more than that."

Graham, a starter for the first four years of his pro career, said he's excited by the prospect, though he hasn't been told yet about the possibility. "That would be pretty cool. Last year was the first year getting bullpen work, so it wouldn't be a big adjustment," Graham said. "I could have gone farther on Sunday. I felt good. I could probably go 100 [pitches] right now."

Phil Hughes and Trevor May will start Wednesday's doubleheader, and then Molitor will decide whether to use Graham or Kyle Gibson on Thursday, and whether another pitcher must be called up for Friday's game against Milwaukee.

• The Twins have a long day Wednesday, and it's going to start early. Despite having a doubleheader to play, they plan to take batting practice, because they have hit on the diamond before a game only twice in the past 11 days. "I'd like to get the boys on the field. We're trying to keep things as consistent as possible, but you make the best of your circumstances," hitting coach Tom Brunansky said. "The guys are hanging in there, but we'd like to get back to our routine."

• Former Twins pitcher Kevin Slowey has accepted a job as assistant to MLB Players Association executive director Tony Clark, a position that will suit him well, a former teammate said. "He's very smart, very personable, can talk to a lot of people. He knows what's going on," Twins reliever Brian Duensing said. "He'll be good at it. And working for the union, he'll still be around the game, so [retirement] might be a little easier for him."