FORT MYERS, Fla. — The entire Twins camp roster took the field for batting practice this morning, but that didn't last long. A handful of players quickly took their turns in the cage, and then were dismissed in order to get dressed and packed for an early afternoon flight to Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic.
It's an unusual road mid-camp road trip, which will culminate in the Twins' game with the Tigers tomorrow, in front of dozens of friends and family members of Miguel Sano, Nelson Cruz and Gilberto Celestino.
Now the remaining half of the roster — most of this season's projected starters, actually — are on the field, completing their pregame workout for today's 1 p.m. ET game against the Tampa Bay Rays. Jhoulys Chacin will face righthander Yonny Chirinos in that game, with former (twice) Twin Ryan LaMarre in the lineup for the Rays.
Bill Evers, who managed Rays' minor-league teams for a decade, will manage the Twins against his old organization today, with Rocco Baldelli and bench coach Mike Bell traveling.
Here are the lineups for today's game in Hammond Stadium (no TV):
RAYS
Arozarena RF
Choi 1B