CHICAGO – The Twins called up righthanded reliever Darren McCaughan from Class AAA St. Paul this morning as they prepare to start a three-game series against the White Sox (1:10 p.m., Twins.tv).

Randy Dobnak, who pitched 5⅓ innings of one-run relief in Sunday's loss in St. Louis, was designated for release or assignment. If he clears waivers, which is likely, he'd be assigned to the Saints.

The 29-year-old McCaughan pitched for the Marlins and Guardians last season, and also for those teams' AAA squads. He'll wear No. 51 today at Rate Field.

Chris Paddack will start for the Twins, his first regular-season appearance since before last year's All-Star break.

Temperatures are expected to be in the low 40s on Monday when Paddack starts against the White Sox in Chicago, "so I might have an advantage over most guys because I'm used to the high winds [and] cold mornings out on the hunt."

Actually, his biggest advantage is probably the return of his ability to hit the corners, blow high strikes past hitters and not worry about further damaging his surgically repaired shoulder and elbow.

The secret, he hopes, is more regular low-impact throwing in order to keep his arm prepared for the intensity of a major league game.

The surgeon who performed Paddack's second Tommy John elbow surgery in 2022, Dr. Keith Meisner, "told me whenever I take time off, even just a couple of days, my body doesn't respond very well to ramping back up. I have stiffness or arm fatigue the next time I get on a mound," Paddack said.

"It sounds crazy, but he convinced me of the idea of having a backyard catch like when I was a kid, throwing three of four times a day with my dad or brother. Or throwing a football around for a while, or just long-tossing. So I do something every day, just to keep the shoulder and elbow moving, just flexing the joints."

It seems to have worked over the winter, between hunts, and Paddack says he feels better than he has felt in years.

"I'm excited. I feel like the last six days have gone by really slow," he said. "Now that the games matter, there are a few more nerves. So let's get the first one out of the way so I can settle in."

Twins-White Sox series preview

Three-game series at Rate Field

All games on twins.tv, 830-AM and 102.9-FM

Monday, 1:10 p.m.: RHP Chris Paddack (5-3, 4.99 ERA in 2024) vs. Martín Pérez (5-6, 4.53 in 2024)

Tuesday, 6:40 p.m.: RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (5-5, 4.17 ERA in 2024) vs. RHP Shane Smith (6-3, 3.05 in minors in 2024)

Wednesday, 1:10 p.m.: RHP Pablo López (0-1, 3.60) vs. RHP Sean Burke (1-0, 0.00)

Twins update: They opened with three losses in St. Louis, swept in a season-opening series for the first time since 2016, when they lost three games in Baltimore. ... The Twins were 12-1 against the White Sox last season and are 21-5 against the White Sox in the past two seasons. They outscored the White Sox 85-45 last season while averaging 7 runs per game for the season series. The Twins' only loss to the White Sox last season was in the first game of a doubleheader on July 10 in Chicago when Erick Fedde, who is now with St. Louis, outdueled Bailey Ober 3-1. ... Two of the three games in this series are day games as the Twins open the season with 11 of their first 16 games as day games. The Twins were 39-27 in day games last season — the fourth-best mark in MLB. Only the L.A. Dodgers (28-15), Cleveland (35-22) and Milwaukee (39-26) had better winning percentages in day games.

White Sox update: They are coming off an MLB record 121 losses last season and 101 losses in 2023, and opened the season by losing two of three to the Los Angeles Angels in Chicago. The White Sox won the opener on Thursday 8-1, before the Angels won 1-0 on Saturday and 3-2 on Sunday. White Sox pitching allowed just three earned runs in 27 innings in the season-opening series. ... OF Andrew Benintendi, who hit a team-high 20 home runs last season, hit a three-run home run in the opening day victory. ... Pérez, who was 10-7 for the Twins in 2019, is in his first season with the White Sox. He spent last season Pittsburgh and San Diego after going 10-4 for Texas in 2023. ... RHP Drew Thorpe and RHP Prelander Berroa were placed on the 60-day injured list during the final week of spring training. Both will undergo Tommy John surgery. Thorpe was 3-3 in nine starts for the White Sox last season while Berroa was 1-0 with a 3.32 ERA in 17 appearances last season. Berroa struck out 26 in 19 innings. ... OF Mike Tauchman (right hamstring strain), who was with the Chicago Cubs the past two seasons, was placed on the 10-day injured list on March 27 and could be activated next weekend.