WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- With the Twins playing at West Palm Beach on Wednesday, Clearwater on Thursday, and Sarasota in a couple of days, it's a challenge for Twins manager Paul Molitor to get all he can from these Spring Training games.
Travel squads, coupled with the World Baseball Classic make for some unusual lineups, but Molitor still finds value in games like the one the team played on Wednesday, making the long trip to West Palm Beach. The 8-4 loss to Houston was the first in a long string of road games, six out of nine overall.
"Yeah, some of that is related to travel and [the World Baseball Classic], it's late in camp, but some of the guys are still competing, so the guys have a chance to go out and do something," Molitor said of the importance of the remaining Grapefruit League games. "It's not ideal. But we're here and I'm watching people."
Still, putting together lineups based on travel squads presents its own unique challenge.
"We're trying to make good decisions despite the fact that the schedule has not been very favorable," Molitor said. "We've had a ton of long trips. So I've had to look at that a little bit more.
"I generally try to say, 'Don't let the bus trips prevent you from making the right decision about who needs to play.' But you're certainly aware of the toll that that takes and trying to find ways to get some people ready without having to make them travel a lot."