CLEVELAND — Michael Cuddyer looked good in early batting practice and seemed fine running the bases, but the Twins must be giving him one more day to recover from his strained lower back.

Cuddyer is out of the lineup for the third straight game, meaning more playing time for Delmon Young.

Just bumped into one of the Indians writers and offered my condolences. That team was a fashionable pick to win the AL Central this year, and now he’s covering a team that probably won’t be a threat next year.

“We’re not rebuilding though,” he said. “That’s the company line.”

Update: Manager Ron Gardenhire said Cuddyer’s back feels much better, but the trainers want to see how he feels, coming back Wednesday.

(*) Two of Cleveland’s relievers, RH Chris Perez and RH Justin Masterson, came to the team in their recent trades. Perez came from St. Louis in the Mark DeRosa trade, and Masterson came from Boston in the Victor Martinez deal.

(*) Follow us on Twitter @JoeCStarTribune and @LaVelleNeal.

Update: Kevin Slowey had surgery today to remove a bone chip from his right wrist, and the surgery was deemed a success. The Twins even relayed a quote from Slowey: “It went exactly as planned, and we’re happy with the outcome.”

Slowey is still expected to miss the rest of the season, but he should be 100 percent for spring training.

TWINS (52-53)

1. Denard Span, RF
2. Orlando Cabrera, SS
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Justin Morneau, 1B
5. Jason Kubel, DH
6. Joe Crede, 3B
7. Delmon Young, LF
8. Carlos Gomez, CF
9. Nick Punto, 2B

Starting pitcher: RH Scott Baker (8-7, 4.86 ERA)

INDIANS (44-61)

1. Grady Sizemore, CF
2. Asdrubal Cabrera, SS
3. Shin Soo Choo, RF
4. Jhonny Peralta, 3B
5. Travis Hafner, DH
6. Chris Gimenez, C
7. Luis Valbuena, 2B
8. Andy Marte, 1B
9. Trevor Crowe, LF

Starting pitcher: LH David Huff (5-5, 6.39 ERA)

Progressive Field. First pitch: 6:05 p.m. (Central). TV: FSN

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 4th, 2009 at 3:09 pm and is filed under Twins thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.