Tillman on his view from the bullpen (O's ahead 5-1)

MINNESOTA - Chris Tillman is sitting in a major league bullpen today, and not at an All-Star Game or to visit friends and teammates. He's listed with the relievers after returning from paternity leave.

Tillman hasn't pitched in relief in a major league game and can't remember the last time it happened in the minors. It was one game at Triple-A Norfolk in 2012 after five at a rookie-level affiliate of the Mariners in 2006.

"That's why I'm here," he said. "I threw my bullpen and it went really well. A lot better than I expected it to go, having five days off. I feel like I'm ready. I've played catch twice, so it hasn't been too long.

"Pitching's still pitching. Still got a rubber, still got a mound and a hitter. The process might be a little different, but once you get out there it's the same."

Life has changed for Tillman following the birth of his first child on the Fourth of July.

"It's been awesome, probably the best experience of my life, to tell you the truth," he said. "It was awesome. Mom is good, baby's good, so I'm glad to be back."

Tillman made sure to keep his arm ready despite all of the distractions.

"It wasn't too bad," he said. "Being right there in Baltimore, it was easy to get to the field when I needed to. I went there twice and then went to Bowie once, so it hasn't been bad. I was pretty easy. A 20-minute drive and I'm at the park, and an hour later I'm back home. It wasn't hard."

The routine will be repeated at the All-Star break.

"Same thing," he said. "I'm right there. I don't have any problems getting to the field and doing stuff that I need to do to keep myself ready to pitch. It's not the first time I've had a break. I feel like every year I've been at the field most of the time. Probably not as much this year because we have a new addition, but I'll find a way."

Manager Buck Showalter decided to put Tillman in the bullpen today and start left-hander Wade Miley. How the right-hander adapts, if needed, isn't a concern.

"Just try to give him a little heads up," Showalter said. "A long time ago, a lot of people were asking those questions about (Zach) Britton. Hopefully, I don't have to use him today, but I would like to get him on the mound before we break. It's been a long week-plus for him and we'll see. Kind of like Zach. We need to keep Zach pitching. Can't let him sit around for a while. Same way with Chris. We're going to need him."

Showalter and pitching coach Roger McDowell are in the process of setting up the schedules of each pitcher during the break. Much depends on how the rotation lines up.

"Roger and I were talking about it yesterday about making sure when they leave there that they've got some work done," Showalter said. "We've got some work days and things going. You're going to try to leave them alone for three days. Some of them will throw during that period and that's one of the reasons why you have that workout on Thursday, and to do some other things. But none of it is going to be ideal for a guy like Chris because it could be a long time between starts. But it could work out as a positive, too. We'll see."

Britton allowed two runs last night in his second appearance since coming off the disabled list. It's still a process to knock off the rust and regain his form following a period that mimicked his spring training.

"Oh sure, I'm sure there's some of that. But he's had a pretty lengthy rehab where he pitched a lot of games down there," Showalter said. "Obviously, it's a different level, but he's close to having another shutout inning last night. If we make the plays we should make behind him, he would have. But it's always a work in progress.

"I'd love to see him get a couple good games under his belt. I think we all expect him to kind of get on a roll. He was pitching pretty well statistically before he went down. Been trying to pitch him every other day. If he doesn't come in last night and just sitting around and he doesn't pitch until after the break, that's just not good business for him because he's obviously one of our best pitchers and we need to get him back in form."

Jonathan Schoop is making his first major league start at shortstop today while Johnny Giavotella starts at second base.

"He's played a lot of shortstop in the shifts the last two years, so the angles and everything are about the same," Showalter said. "He's got plenty of arm strength. Manny (Machado) is such a good third baseman, and the wear and tear it takes on somebody playing shortstop, you've got to be careful there. In an ideal world, Manny would be at third and Jon would be at second, but J.J. (Hardy) is down and I want to give Gio some at-bats today and get a look at him there."

The Orioles are 18-36 since their 22-10 start. They need to win the last two games to gain a split of their series against the Twins.

"I haven't been here for the last five days and to tell you the truth I haven't seen much," Tillman said. "I've been a little busy, a little preoccupied. But I feel like everyone's so close. Like I said earlier in the year, the difference between a good start and a bad start and a good game and a bad game is normally like within a few pitches. You make one pitch and that guy's out.

"I feel like it's so close. It's right there and you've just got to go get it."

Update: Miguel Sanó homered off Miley with two outs in the third inning to give Minnesota a 1-0 lead. Sanó is 3-for-3 with two home runs lifetime against Miley, who's allowed six hits today in three innings.

Update II: Schoop homered into the second deck in left field after Machado's one-out single, giving the Orioles a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning.

Update III: Joey Rickard and Machado doubled in the sixth inning and Machado scored on a fielder's choice and error, with Mark Trumbo getting an RBI. Orioles 4, Twins 1

Miley allowed one run and eight hits in 5 2/3 innings. Darren O'Day left the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth.

Update IV: Trumbo homered off Buddy Boshers in the eighth, his 14th, to increase the lead to 5-1.