Manny to the Dodgers?

[HoustonGM]

There is a reason Ortiz bats 3rd, and that is it is the most important slot. He can hit for power and get on base. Bay should bat 4th, as he is also powerful and shoul do well there.

Third is not the most important slot. The third spot in the batting order comes up the most times over the season with 2 outs and no runners on base. That's the spot you want your best power hitter hitting in more often than your other players? Ortiz should bat clean up.

[RedsoxRockies]

Third is not the most important slot. The third spot in the batting order comes up the most times over the season with 2 outs and no runners on base. That's the spot you want your best power hitter hitting in more often than your other players? Ortiz should bat clean up.

He could bat either way, I was just throwing something out there. I just feel Bay should bat 3rd or 4th.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

I think it should probably go

1. Pedroia
2. Youk
3. Bay
4. Ortiz
5. Drew
6. Lowell
7. Lowrie
8. Tek
9. Ellsbury

Perhaps switch Bay and Drew.

[dickay]

I think it should probably go

1. Pedroia
2. Youk
3. Bay
4. Ortiz
5. Drew
6. Lowell
7. Lowrie
8. Tek
9. Ellsbury

Perhaps switch Bay and Drew.

Tito won't go lefty lefty...probably swap drew with lowell and you're onto something. I think Papi may stay in the 3 hole with Lowell hitting 4th followed by Drew than Bay. I think Bay will have to earn his stripes before he's put at the top of the order.

1. Pedroia
2. Youk
3. Ortiz
4. Lowell
5. Drew
6. Bay
7. Lowrie
8. Tek
9. Ellsbury

or

1. Pedroia
2. Youk
3. Lowell
4. Ortiz
5. Bay
6. Drew
7. Lowrie
8. Tek
9. Ellsbury

[haveacigar]

for the record, high OBP guy should never bat 3rd. #3 hitters should be guys who are well rounded hitters but tend to free swing, since the #3 spot will rarely leadoff an inning.

Curtis Granderson, for example, makes a great #3 hitter. Red Sox lineup cards should be pre-printed with Ortiz in the #4 spot

[dickay]

for the record, high OBP guy should never bat 3rd. #3 hitters should be guys who are well rounded hitters but tend to free swing, since the #3 spot will rarely leadoff an inning.

Curtis Granderson, for example, makes a great #3 hitter. Red Sox lineup cards should be pre-printed with Ortiz in the #4 spot

I always thought the teams best all around hitter should hit 3rd, and I thought it should be a high obp guy....find a way to extend the inning by a hit/rbi or getting on for the cleanup man.

[ohms_law]

If all that you want to think about is the first inning, sure...

[haveacigar]

I always thought the teams best all around hitter should hit 3rd, and I thought it should be a high obp guy....find a way to extend the inning by a hit/rbi or getting on for the cleanup man.

you want a good hitter, but not a high OBP guy. Ideally, you want to take the low OBP among your best hitters, and save high OBP guys for leadoff or cleanup.

you do want to extend the inning for the cleanup guy with a hit, but a walk isn't as valuable in those kind of situations. You can think of it as saying, the #3 spot is the spot in the top of the order where OBP is least important.

[RedsoxRockies]

Bay has had a good start. 0-1, 3 walks, a HBP

[Joe Morgan]

If you get into the playoffs you have a chance...

This is an excellent analysis! Where do you come up with these things? Do you mind if I use this on our future telecasts? Thanks in advance.

[chuckwillard]

Hmm...I didn't see the game, I was driving home from the beach, but I caught a little on the radio when I could get it.

Bay is a nice pickup, I've been very high on him for a while.

Were I Tito, I'd be bald. That obvious statement aside, I'd set the lineup...

1. Ellsbury
2. Pedroia
3. Youkilis
4. Ortiz
5. Bay
6. Drew
7. Lowell
8. Varitek
9. Lowrie

I like Pedroia more as a natural 2-hitter than a leadoff guy. I like Ellsbury's speed at the top of the lineup, with high contact guys like Pedroia and Youkilis behind him...leads to good hit and run opportunities. Put Bay 5th to split the lefties, and move the most unproven hitter (Lowrie) to ninth.

As a total aside, couldn't Manny find something besides 99 to wear? I know 24 is retired, and I heard he asked for 34 which was Fernando's, but honestly, 99? I hate when baseball players wear football numbers. As a coach, I won't issue jersey's above 50, and even then, I'll only give out a high number to a kid who wants to "wear Pedro's number" or some such. If a kid has no preference, he gets a single digit on the infield, 20's in the outfield, and 30's as a pitcher, generally. Then again, we don't have any retired numbers, either.

I wonder too if Bay will go back to his customary 38 once Schilling retires. The Sox might retire it, but they're very stringent about that, and he probably wasn't with them long enough, despite the two rings.

[HoustonGM]

I always thought the teams best all around hitter should hit 3rd, and I thought it should be a high obp guy....find a way to extend the inning by a hit/rbi or getting on for the cleanup man.

You want the best OBP getting the most at bats, meaning batting 1st. The third place hitter comes up the most with no runners on and 2 outs, and sure, extending the inning is good, but you want to make the most of OBP by making sure you have the most chances to score those runs from the basepaths, so a 2-out situation isn't ideal for that. The fourth place hitter comes up most with runners on base, which is where you ideally want your best power hitter.

I think of the 3-hole like this. You want a guy that has the ability to do something big on his own, like hit a home run, but you don't want him to be the best hitter, because you don't want your best hitter coming up in none on, 2 out situations. You don't need him to be a high-OBP guy, because you don't want to waste that OBP in situations where you can't make the best of it.

Typically, I want my best hitters batting 1st, 2nd, and 4th, going for OBP at the top and power in the middle. I want my next best hitters 3rd and 5th, with the bigger power, lower OBP of the two (if that's possible) batting 3rd. Then the rest of my hitters 6 through 9.

Given the Red Sox current team, I'd go:

JD Drew
Kevin Youkilis
Mike Lowell
David Ortiz
Jason Bay
Dustin Pedroia
Jason Varitek
Jacoby Ellsbury
Julio Lugo

Unconventional, sure, but you have good OBP at the top, and good power in the middle. I actually might swap Pedroia and Youkilis.

[dickay]

Bay has had a good start. 0-1, 3 walks, a HBP

Bay played well......but on the flip side the offense generated a mere 2 runs and needed 12 to do it.

[dickay]

You want the best OBP getting the most at bats, meaning batting 1st. The third place hitter comes up the most with no runners on and 2 outs, and sure, extending the inning is good, but you want to make the most of OBP by making sure you have the most chances to score those runs from the basepaths, so a 2-out situation isn't ideal for that. The fourth place hitter comes up most with runners on base, which is where you ideally want your best power hitter.

I think of the 3-hole like this. You want a guy that has the ability to do something big on his own, like hit a home run, but you don't want him to be the best hitter, because you don't want your best hitter coming up in none on, 2 out situations. You don't need him to be a high-OBP guy, because you don't want to waste that OBP in situations where you can't make the best of it.

Typically, I want my best hitters batting 1st, 2nd, and 4th, going for OBP at the top and power in the middle. I want my next best hitters 3rd and 5th, with the bigger power, lower OBP of the two (if that's possible) batting 3rd. Then the rest of my hitters 6 through 9.

Given the Red Sox current team, I'd go:

JD Drew
Kevin Youkilis
Mike Lowell
David Ortiz
Jason Bay
Dustin Pedroia
Jason Varitek
Jacoby Ellsbury
Julio Lugo

Unconventional, sure, but you have good OBP at the top, and good power in the middle. I actually might swap Pedroia and Youkilis.

They really need Ellsbury to be at the top of the lineup if he can get on base. The bottom three with Ells struggling is too easy. Ells first, with Youk or Pedroia second pushes a hitter with pop into the 7 hole and greatly extends the lineup.
I wanna pat myself on the bat for pretty much being the only one who said I wasn't totally sold yet on Ellsbury (love patting myself on the back). He's got tons of talent but needs to show he can perform through the rigors of a whole season. He's the key offensively to the remainder of the Sox season IMO.

[HoustonGM]

They really need Ellsbury to be at the top of the lineup if he can get on base.

Yeah, if he could get on base.