Twins 3B Miguel Sano to start minor league rehab Tuesday

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota Twins third baseman Miguel Sano will begin an injury rehab assignment with Class A Fort Myers on Tuesday after recovering from a right heal laceration.

Sano missed all of spring training and the start of the season. He cut his right foot falling down metal steps celebrating a winter league championship in the Dominican Republic.

Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said Sano will start with partial games at Fort Myers and built himself up. Sano is expected to make stops in Double-A and Triple-A during a lengthy assignment.

“He has to get to a number of at-bats, which I’m not ready to kind of pout that number out there, but he has to get a sufficient number of at-bats where we feel confident that we’re not putting him at a disservice to himself or us to just bring him back here,” Baldelli said.

Sano hit .199 with 13 homers in 71 games with Minnesota last season. The 25-year-old set out to improve his conditioning in the offseason after injuries hampered his production.

“That’s been a big part of us not wanting to rush him,” Baldelli said. “He worked really hard this offseason. Let’s just say what it is. He made this a priority. His body and his career went ahead of literally everything else going on. He did a great job. That’s why him dealing with what he dealt with was so difficult.”