"We wouldn't want to do that with him, but we've talked about different scenarios," Gardenhire said of Pelfrey starting Friday, per MLB.com. "Maybe sling him in the middle before somebody else starts. But we'll talk about that and straighten that out as we go along here."

Pelfrey was victimized by Adam Dunn and Dayan Viciedo homers as he allowed five earned runs on eight hits and two walks over just four innings. He struck out two but needed 91 pitches to record just 12 outs. He took the loss to fall to 3-4 on the season with a 6.57 ERA. 

The Minnesota starter had allowed just four runs over his previous two starts for a 1-0 record over 12 innings with eight strikeouts. He's allowed four homers on the year, but they have come in just two of his eight starts. 

Pelfrey, who has largely been mediocre this year with a 1.77 WHIP and .339 batting average against, will remain in the rotation, according to manager Ron Gardenhire, MLB.com reports. He will make his next scheduled start Tuesday at Atlanta during an interleague series. 

Pelfrey, who struck out just one batter for the fourth time in seven starts, lowered his ERA to 6.03 on the year, which he'll take along with a 3-3 record into a home game against the White Sox Wednesday.