Opening day lineup?
Take a good look at the lineup from Saturday, because Jim Leyland said he’d use it if the opener was today:
1. Curtis Granderson, CF
2. Placido Polanco, 2B
3. Ivan Rodriguez, C
4. Magglio Ordonez, RF
5. Dmitri Young, DH
6. Craig Monroe, LF
7. Carlos Guillen, SS
8. Chris Shelton, 1B
9. Brandon Inge, 3B
Having Guillen and Shelton batting seventh and eighth is a pretty good sign of balance in the lineup if everyone stays healthy. Batting Pudge back in the third spot will probably spark some debate. Leyland is staying true to his statement that he believes last season was an off year for someone he considers a pretty good hitter.
"I just think he’s been a professional hitter his whole career. Hopefully he can be that way this year," Leyland said.
Before debating whether Dmitri should be batting fifth, keep in mind that he’s a switch-hitter coming after three consecutive right-handed batters. Monroe and Shelton are both righties, so the only other non-righty to put in there would be Guillen.
Jason Beck
I like it and it distributes the balance from top to bottom. Opposing pitchers should not be able to relax or find a soft spot. He can still tweak it a bit to meet certain teams or situations.
Shelton is hitting way too low…bottom line.
What the heck is Shelton doing in the eight hole?! This kid has been touted as a future AL Batting Champion, but he ain’t gonna’ do it from there. And Pudge at three? That’s ridiculous; at least he’ll have less to whine about…here’s mine, if any one cares: 1)Guillen,SS. 2)Polanco,2B. 3)Shelton,1B. 4)Ordonez,RF. 5)Young,DH. 6)Rodriquez,C. 7)Monroe,LF. 8)Inge,3B. 9)Granderson,CF
What the heck is Shelton doing in the eight hole?! This kid has been touted as a future AL Batting Champion, but he ain’t gonna’ do it from there. And Pudge at three? That’s ridiculous; at least he’ll have less to whine about…here’s mine, if any one cares: 1)Guillen,SS. 2)Polanco,2B. 3)Shelton,1B. 4)Ordonez,RF. 5)Young,DH. 6)Rodriquez,C. 7)Monroe,LF. 8)Inge,3B. 9)Granderson,CF
I guess it’s possible that last season marked the beginning of the inevitable decline in Pudge’s career, but his track record suggests that maybe it was just an aberration.
I think he’ll produce this season. He doesn’t have the divorce hanging over his head and the manager he didn’t like isn’t there anymore. He has NO excuses this season!
I remember reading that Leyland said there might not be a setting batting order all season. Of course, he’ll be tweaking it against LHPs, and productivity is also going to be a factor.
First of all I don’t think it is set in concrete. If everyone hits the ball like they can and should we may be saying why on earth is Inge batting nineth. One thing for sure Shelton should feel little presure to produce. He just needs do the same things he did last year and adjust when necessary. For a positive effect the three guys ahead of him present the opportunity for Shelton to be the second half of the lineups cleanup man. I’m not to worried about the lineup I think they should all produce but I basically want to see Carlos return to the level of two seasons ago. I want to see Dmitri return to the .300 hitter he was when he came here and I’d like to see Ivan return to a near .300 hitter. In the limited time we’ve seen Magglio it’s apparent he can hit. I hope we see a little improvement in that hitting with some resurgence of his power. His stats from his Whitesox days were awsome. This lineup could also be awsome and potent too. One thing here about Leyland’s positive approach with Pudge, it my drive him to have one of his better seasons. Let’s hope so.