BRADENTON, FLA. — Justin Morneau, who hasn’t played since Monday, said he’s not sure if he’ll play in Saturday’s spring finale against Pittsburgh, but he said his back feels a little better today, and he hopes it’s not an issue for Monday’s opener.

Delmon Young (sore right shoulder) is back in the lineup today. Nick Punto was in the clubhouse in workout gear this morning, one day after landing awkwardly on the baseball. So that’s a good sign for him.

It’s raining here at McKechnie Field, but it’s supposed to clear by 11 a.m. (Central), meaning they should get this game in.

Update: The sky is brightening, they’ve removed the tarp, and the players are playing catch.

Update: Punto is fine, Manager Ron Gardenhire said. The shortstop took batting practice today and should be back in the lineup Saturday.

Morneau was expected to be back on the field, doing drills, though perhaps not taking swings. Still a step in the right direction for him.

Gardenhire said he might not know his Opening Night lineup until Monday. Understandable, with all the injuries.

He did say Mike Redmond will get most of the catching duty, with Morales in the traditional backup role (day games after night games, etc.).

Gardenhire also hinted that he’s thinking about a 3-4-5 of Michael Cuddyer, Morneau and Jason Kubel. There had been talk of putting Kubel in the No. 3 spot, but Cuddyer might get the nod.

“The biggest thing is having protection for Morneau,” Gardenhire said. “So a righty won’t come up and throw four non-competitive pitches [to Morneau] and let’s pitch to the next guy. I feel like Kubel, another lefty, makes them think a little bit. So we’ll see. First we’ve got to see who’s there.”

Asked what the spring has told him about his four-outfielders-three-spots dilemma, Gardenhire said it’s been pretty much what he thought coming in.

“I think Cuddy’s solidified himself in right field, which I kind of figured he would,” Gardenhire said. “Cuddy’s played really, really good, and the rest of them are all doing about the same.

“I said all along, we’ve got four pretty good outfielders here. They all probably need to be playing all the time, and that isn’t going to happen. All I can do is go with what I have on the roster and try to figure it out as best I can. I don’t want to back myself into a corner, saying there’s a platoon here or a platoon there. … We’re just going to mix and match.”

Update: The Mariners today placed Ichiro Suzuki on the 15-day disabled list with severe fatigue. He has played 197 consecutive games but will be unavailable for next week’s series against the Twins.

TWINS

1. Denard Span, RF
2. Alexi Casilla, 2B
3. Michael Cuddyer, 1B
4. Delmon Young, LF
5. Carlos Gomez, CF
6. Brian Buscher, DH
7. Brendan Harris, 3B
8. Mike Redmond, C
9. Matt Tolbert, SS

Starting pitcher: RH Kevin Slowey

PIRATES

1. Nyjer Morgan, LF
2. Freddy Sanchez, 2B
3. Nate McLouth, CF
4. Ryan Doumit, C
5. Adam LaRoche, 1B
6. Craig Monroe, DH (he officially made this team)
7. Brandon Moss, RF
8. Ramon Vazquez, 3B
9. Jack Wilson, SS

Starting pitcher: LH Zach Duke

McKechnie Field. First pitch: 12:05 p.m. (Central)

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