Twins recall Yohan Pino, Kris Johnson optioned to Triple-A

By recalling Yohan Pino, the Twins have solved the dilemma of which pitcher would start the fifth game to start the second half. The issue remains, however, and Minnesota's starting pitcher is still to be determined for Saturday's game versus the White Sox.

Pino, who has made five starts with the Twins this year (26.2 innings, 4.39 ERA), was shipped to Triple-A just prior to the All-Star break. In his lone start for the Red Wings, he allowed five runs in five innings as control eluded him en route to seven walks. He only allowed three hits, and did strike out six, but he was all over the board. On the season for Rochester, Pino has a 2.45 ERA in 66 innings.

To make room for Pino, the Twins have optioned Kris Johnson back to Triple-A. In three starts for the Twins Johnson had mixed results, allowing seven runs in 13.1 innings - striking out 12 and walking nine. He'll be unavailable for the Twins to recall for ten days barring injury, and that leads us to Saturday.

The Red Wings pitcher on rotation for Saturday is Sean Gilmartin. Gilmartin is not on the 40-man roster, which means the Twins would need to find him a roster spot or, more likely, find someone else to take the spot. If you're wondering, Alex Meyer was scheduled to pitch tomorrow and Trevor May was scheduled to pitch Thursday. Mark Hamburger is taking Pino's scheduled start for the Red Wings today.