López progressing toward throwing off a mound

MINNEAPOLIS -- Pablo López has not yet begun throwing off a mound, but that doesn’t mean he’s just playing catch.

López said Friday that he’s throwing on flat ground at about 100 feet, and he’s been throwing all of his pitches during his sessions. The next step is to throw from 120 feet, which could come as early as Saturday. After some undetermined number of throws at 120 feet, he would begin throwing off a mound.

That’s exciting for López, and for the Twins as well. He’s still weeks away from a return to the active roster, but returning to throwing off the mound is one of the biggest steps in any pitcher’s rehab, and that step is at least in sight.

“I think I’ve checked all the boxes pre-mound,” he said, “and I’m looking forward to throwing off the mound again. I’m spinning the breaking ball, curveball’s curving, sweeper’s sweeping, changeup’s changing. It’s been good.”

López suffered a strain of the teres major muscle in the back of his right shoulder on June 3 in Sacramento.

Ober makes second rehab start

Bailey Ober made his second Minor League rehab start as he attempts to sort out his delivery during an injured list stint for right hip inflammation. Overall, Ober’s results on Friday for Triple-A St. Paul were better than his first start -- he pitched five innings, allowed one run on two hits and a walk and struck out six.

With that said, the Twins aren’t looking for results from Ober. They’re looking for progress as he attempts to regain the form he showed early in the year and for most of his big league career. His velocity, which has been down for most of the year, did not show improvement. He averaged 90.5 miles per hour on his four-seam fastball.

On a more encouraging note, Ober did get 12 swings and misses on 65 pitches, seven of them on his changeup. Of his 65 pitches, 45 went for strikes -- nearly 70 percent.

Twins place Misiewicz on IL

As expected, the Twins formally placed lefty Anthony Misiewicz on the 15-day injured list on Friday. Misiewicz suffered a left pectoral muscle strain in Tuesday night’s game against the Dodgers, and at the time it seemed likely he was IL-bound.

The club did not initially make a move, however, in part because they also placed David Festa on the IL on Wednesday morning. That meant the Twins recalled Travis Adams from Triple-A St. Paul, so Adams was available for Wednesday’s game against the Dodgers and as a result, they had a fully-stocked bullpen for the road trip finale.

On Friday, though, they officially sidelined Misiewicz and recalled lefty Kody Funderburk from Triple-A.

With Festa out, the Twins have yet to announce a starter for Sunday’s home game against the Nationals. They are most likely to use an opener to begin the game, with Adams in line to serve as the bulk pitcher.

Only one left

The Twins agreed to terms with their sixth-round pick, Bruin Agbayani, on Friday for slightly over slot, according to MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis. That leaves only one of their 21 Draft picks unsigned -- 16th-round selection Jonathan Stevens out of Alabama. Callis reports that Agbayani will receive a bonus of $380,600, good for $19,000 more than slot value.