His normal spot in the rotation will come up on Thursday against the White Sox, and that would keep López on normal rest after starting on Saturday in the minors. He may only throw 80 pitches in that first start back based on his usage in his rehab start, but that should be more than enough pitches to be in your lineup against the White Sox. López’s return could push David Festa from the rotation unless the Twins are ready to cut bait on one of Chris Paddack or Simeon Woods-Richardson.

López threw a whopping 43 of 63 pitches for strikes in his first rehab outing and might be able to jump back into Minnesota’s rotation at some point later next week. The 29-year-old righty has been on the shelf since April 11, recovering from a right hamstring strain.

López was able to throw a successful bullpen Wednesday, and now the 29-year-old will get a chance to work against hitters at the Triple-A level. He may need a couple of rehab outings before he rejoins the Minnesota rotation, but if everything goes well, he should be back by the end of April or the early portion of May.

The bullpen session went well, and Lòpez said he felt good afterwards. The Twins will now wait to see how his hamstring responds tomorrow before deciding the next course of action. If he’s cleared to return, he could move right back into the rotation or make one rehab start, which means the window for David Festa or Zebby Matthews to get into the Twins rotation could be closing.