More on Saturday's starter and Giavotella's arrival (O's down 6-4)

MINNESOTA - The Orioles will remove Chris Tillman from the paternity list on Saturday, but manager Buck Showalter could put him in the bullpen before the break.

Showalter seems to be leaning toward starting Wade Miley in the third game of the series, keeping the left-hander on his normal turn.

Tillman had a work day this afternoon at Double-A Bowie under the guidance of pitching coach Kennie Steenstra. He's been away from the team since Monday for the birth of his daughter Charlotte.

"We'll see how the next day or so goes," Showalter said. "We'll talk to him when he gets here. I don't like the idea of him flying in here Friday night and pitching Saturday with that much time off.

"He basically hasn't done a whole lot besides throw today. One of the things Kennie said after (Tillman) had his side day was that he was pretty gassed. I know he's been trying to do some conditioning work, but he's really off his routine."

The Twins are starting right-hander Felix Jorge on Friday. The spot had been listed as TBD.

First baseman Chris Davis hit off a tee and soft tosses today and will take early batting practice before Friday night's game. The current schedule, subject to change, calls for Davis to play Monday at Single-A Frederick and Wednesday at Single-A Delmarva.

Johnny Giavotella is on the bench tonight after the Orioles selected his contract from Triple-A Norfolk, but he could get into the lineup at a later day. He's not necessarily here only until Tillman returns to the 25-man roster. The Orioles may want to hold onto him.

"Nobody plays the game harder than Johnny," Showalter said. "I told him when he broke camp, I thought he's got a chance to lead that league in hitting and I think he was in the top five or 10. He brings a lot of energy. Good hitter. That's probably as good a track record of hitting through his career as anybody you want to see.

"R.J. (Ron Johnson) said he was their best hitter. Bring him up here and see if there's a need for what he brings."

Because Giavotella is viewed only as a second baseman, Showalter would need to move Jonathan Schoop or sit him. Showalter insists that he's willing to put Schoop or Manny Machado at shortstop while J.J. Hardy is on the disabled list.

"Jon can play shortstop very capably. So can Manny. And obviously (Rubén) Tejada and (Paul) Janish," Showalter said.

"Somebody will have to go out Saturday and we'll see who it is. But we have other people. I feel real comfortable putting Jon or Manny over there. But then that creates like third base with Manny, who plays third, that's more of a challenge."

Giavotella and Johnson were on separate phone calls yesterday when the roster move was relayed from the Orioles.

"I was talking to my fiancé last night in the hotel in Gwinnett, and the manager R.J. happened to walk by and he was on the phone," Giavotella said. "He said, 'Listen, I'm here next to him right now,' and he looked over at me and said, 'You're going to be big leagues.' So, I was on the phone with my fiancé and I told her and we were excited about it."

Giavotella's bat earned him the promotion, along with the energy that could be exactly what the slumping Orioles need as they've fallen four games below .500. He tried not to wonder if the call would come while Norfolk teammates earned promotions.

"I try to just focus on what I can do to help the team win down there," he said. "Focus on my game and when the call came, I'd be ready."

The Orioles always have the shuttle ready. And not just for the pitchers.

"It definitely gives you hope," he said. "This is a first-class organization and an organization I've always looked up to every time I played against them because they always played hard, they always played competitive baseball, and that's another reason why I signed here. So, I'm just excited to be back up and excited to get going and see this team reel off some wins."

Rather than join a team on the rise, Giavotella is arriving as the Orioles have lost six of their last eight games.

"I don't think their record is a good indication of what kind of team they are up here," he said. "I think there's a lot of good baseball to be played. There's a lot more season left. They're only four games out (of the wild card), which isn't a terrible amount. It's just a matter of time before things start clicking and they start reeling off wins."

Giavotella's .306 average ranks fourth in the International League and he has 31 extra-base hits, including 22 doubles.

"Just having confidence in what I can do," he said. "Sticking to my approach. Not trying to do too much and try not to let the negative things affect me down there and just try to stay positive. Control what I can control and have the right attitude every day."

"It's tough. Especially down there because of the travel, the scheduling. The ballparks can be rough at times. But guys are grinding down there. You see all the glamour and glitz of the guys playing up here, but there's guys down in the minor leagues who are working their butts off just as hard and they're waiting for the opportunity, so I have a lot of respect for those guys down there. And I'll definitely be buying the spread at some point soon to help them out."

Update: Adam Jones reached on an error leading off the top of the second inning and Mark Trumbo followed with his 13th home run to give the Orioles a 2-0 lead. Trumbo's ball traveled an estimated 412 feet to center field.

Update II: The Twins scored six runs off Dylan Bundy in the third inning to take a 6-2 lead. They sent 10 batters to the plate and had four hits, a walk and a hit batter.

Max Kepler delivered a two-run single and Eduardo Escobar followed with a two-run triple.

Bundy threw 32 pitches in the inning.

Update III: Trey Mancini doubled to lead off the fourth, advanced on Hyun Soo Kim's single and scored on Paul Janish's ground ball to reduce the lead to 6-3.

Update IV: Mancini had another leadoff double in the sixth and he scored on Kim's sacrifice fly to reduce the lead to 6-4.

Richard Bleier replaced Bundy in the bottom of the sixth.