CLEVELAND -- Given the overall inconsistency in the Minnesota bullpen and with the Twins coming off another episode of heartbreak when the normally reliable Griffin Jax coughed up a lead against the Guardians on Monday, it came as a surprise when, after the game, the Twins chose to option Jorge Alcala to Triple-A.

Alcala had been a leverage arm in the Minnesota bullpen for a large chunk of the summer until his deep recent struggles with hard-hit balls and homers, and the Twins have a handful of relievers on the roster who haven¡¯t been mainstays who don¡¯t have Alcala¡¯s caliber of raw stuff.

So, why was it Alcala who got called into manager Rocco Baldelli¡¯s office for the tough news when the Twins needed to make room on their active roster for Cole Irvin?

¡°The length is probably the main point,¡± Baldelli said. ¡°We're going to have games where we might need someone to go out there and throw three or four innings, potentially. ... We can't get caught in a situation where we can't cover. We're going to have to piece these outings together.¡±

The ability for the Twins to find bulk innings in their bullpen from a variety of sources is particularly important right now because of the reality of their situation, in which three rookies -- Simeon Woods Richardson, David Festa and Zebby Matthews -- have been forced into regular rotation roles.

Entering Tuesday, the members of that trio had been unable to complete five innings in nine of their last 13 starts, including each of their last five., including each of their last five. That has put even more stress on the Twins¡¯ bullpen, needing at least one bulk arm available in three of five games each turn through the rotation, which, in turn, puts an importance on players who can pitch multiple innings.

The issue is that Scott Blewett, Michael Tonkin, Ronny Henrique and Louie Varland -- all of whom, on paper, might have had more tenuous holds on bullpen spots -- can all give the Twins multiple innings, as can Irvin, whose flexibility to pitch as both a starter and reliever will give Baldelli added flexibility down the stretch.

¡°Be ready -- that¡¯s what I¡¯ve been told,¡± Irvin said. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m going to do, be ready. I¡¯ll probably be in the bullpen tonight. Just looking forward to just getting on the mound again and providing innings where the team needs it. Like I said, it¡¯s a good ball club and I know innings are going to help right now.¡±

But as a short-outing, full-effort pitcher with high-octane stuff, it¡¯s more difficult for Alcala to give that to the Twins.

¡°We're going to have to find ways to get two or three innings for guys,¡± Baldelli said. ¡°Ronny is going to have to do that. Lou is going to have to do that. I'm not saying this is going to go perfectly, because it hasn't. But we're going to have to do it that way.¡±

It didn¡¯t help Alcala that he had remaining Minor League options, and it certainly didn¡¯t help that he had also deeply struggled with an 8.22 ERA and seven homers allowed in 15 1/3 innings across his last 15 appearances, dating back to Aug. 4.

Since Alcala¡¯s Aug. 18 implosion in Texas, when he allowed five runs in two-thirds of an inning, he had allowed at least a run in five of nine appearances.

Though Alcala¡¯s season numbers still looked solid on the surface, with a 3.46 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 54 2/3 innings, he had allowed the second-most homers among all MLB relievers since the All-Star break, trending in the wrong direction from the first half, in which he had allowed no homers in 34 2/3 innings.

¡°You like to think that guys can regroup and find their way,¡± Baldelli said. ¡°The last few weeks have been tough. He has given up a lot of hard-hit balls and home runs and things like that. He still has good stuff. We still believe in him. We still anticipate him doing a lot of good things for us over time, but again, it¡¯s not easy.¡±