Build-a-Lineup
by Jon Shields ~ July 21st, 2008
Here’s something all fans love to do: build your own lineup!
We’ve all griped enough about lineups that include several of Willie Bloomquist, Miguel Cairo, Kenji Johjima, Jose Vidro etc., so what would you do?
RF Ichiro Suzuki
2B Jose Lopez
DH Raul Ibanez
3B Adrian Beltre
C Jeff Clement
LF Wlad Balentien
1B Bryan LaHair
SS Yuni Betancourt
CF Jeremy Reed
This is the first lineup that comes to mind for me, but it is full of weaknesses. The biggest one, obviously, is that after Beltre hits there isn’t a very good chance of getting anything done. Having three rookies in a row (Clement, Wlad, LaHair) is never a smart idea, even on a “rebuilding” team. Wlad, by the way, is on a tear in AAA, hitting .400 with 7 homers in his last 10 ballgames.
Second attempt:
RF Ichiro Suzuki
CF Jeremy Reed
DH Raul Ibanez
3B Adrian Beltre
2B Jose Lopez
C Jeff Clement
SS Yuni Betancourt
1B Bryan LaHair
LF Wlad Balentien
I like this one better. Slotting Lopez 5th extends the lineup a bit and batting Wlad in front of Ichiro gives him a better set of pitches to look at. The problems: Again, the bottom half of the lineup is a liability. Also, having three lefties at the top of the order isn’t the wisest move, though not unheard of (I think the Indians started the year off with three lefties at the top).
Cairo and Bloomquist stay on the bench, where they are supposed to be, but that leaves Johjima (assuming Vidro is the one cut to make room for Wlad). He’s not going to be happy sitting on the bench much longer, and Seattle needs to play him to try and build his value up so they can do their best to deal him once our scandalous owner Yamauchi is out of the picture.
So that brings me to this:
RF Ichiro Suzuki
CF Jeremy Reed
1B Raul Ibanez
3B Adrian Beltre
2B Jose Lopez
C Jeff Clement
SS Yuni Betancourt
DH Kenji Johjima
RF Wlad Balentien
Perhaps that is what I’d go with, against righties anyway. The moral of the story is this: Don’t fault Riggleman for putting together crappy lineups because he doesn’t have a lot to work with.
What would you do? (realistically)
1 Response to Build-a-Lineup
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1 July 22nd, 2008 at 11:30 pm
Man, its a lot different when you just have the Mariners to build your lineup with lol.
Its slim pickins with this club, but here is what I have . . .
RF Ichiro Suzuki
LF Willie Bloomquist
1B Raul Ibanez
3B Adrian Beltre
2B Jose Lopez
C Jeff Clement
SS Yuni Betancourt
DH Kenji Johjima
CF Wlad Balentien
Mine isn’t much different from Jon’s but I see Willie as someone to be used. He shines when he gets playing time (mostly) and has been a solid hitter in the past. I’d use him over Reed simply because I think Willie is going to put up better numbers than Reed. I’d put Willie in left though as Wlad would make the better CF. I think Willie covers enough ground and has the defensive skills to be a solid choice in the left corner.