Twins day at camp: Bullpen job unlikely in Meyer's future

JUPITER, FLA. – Alex Meyer sped up his warm-up for his fourth- and-fifth-inning appearances Saturday, but the 25-year-old righthander said he's adapting well to coming out of the bullpen this spring. His manager reiterated, however, that it's only a temporary necessity.

"I would say the odds on [Meyer pitching in relief] are pretty long. We want to build him up to start," Paul Molitor said before Meyer's two-inning scoreless stint during the Twins' 6-3 victory over St. Louis on Saturday. "The majority of our people think he should be starting. … Getting him stretched out to fill a starting spot, one way or another, is probably the right thing right now."

"One way or another" is likely a euphemism for "in the majors or Triple-A," since there is only one spot available in the Twins' rotation — and Meyer is one of five candidates for it.

Meyer said he hasn't thought about a bullpen role, other than to adjust his preparation since he's come in after the starter in his two appearances so far. "I don't think anybody has talked about [the bullpen] too much. Everybody talks about the fifth starter, and there's a lot of guys who are going for it," Meyer said. "They don't want anybody thinking too much into it. … Get people out, they'll find a spot for you somewhere."

As a nonroster invitee to spring camp, Shane Robinson remains fairly anonymous to Twins fans. But he's a returning hero in Roger Dean Stadium.

The 7,009 Cardinals fans in attendance Saturday gave Robinson a loud and lengthy ovation when he stepped to the plate in the second inning, a recognition of his five seasons in a St. Louis uniform that admittedly surprised the 30-year-old outfielder.

"It was a really nice gesture on the Cardinal fans' part, and I'm really grateful," Robinson said. "I was a little surprised at how loud things were, but it made me feel real good."

"It was nice to see. It was nice for him, but it was kind of a nice reflection on Cardinal baseball fans," Molitor said. "He was a part of some really good memories. I like to see those kind of things, and the Cardinals fans are as good as anybody at doing that."

Twins closer Glen Perkins threw "20 [or] 25 pitches" in a bullpen session Saturday morning with no pain in his right side, raising the possibility that he could face major-league hitters later this week.

"He'll throw probably another bullpen on Tuesday," Molitor said, "and if everything goes well, hopefully we'll see him in a game by the end of the week."

That's a relief to the Twins and Perkins, who hasn't felt comfortable on the mound since experiencing pain in his right oblique while warming up on March 6 and again three days later. After resting the injury for several days, Perkins threw on flat ground Friday, then moved to a mound Saturday.

"There was no problem today," the 32-year-old lefthander said as he left the bullpen in Fort Myers. "I didn't cut loose completely, although I did let it go more the last few pitches. I'm optimistic that I can get back on schedule here."