April 6, 200818 yr I will be satisfied if the lineup looks something like this once Maybin is called up to take over the leadoff spot. 1. Maybin 2. Hermida 3. Ramirez 4. Willingham 5. Uggla 6. Jacobs 7. Cantu 8. Rabelo/Treanor 9. Pitcher Jacobs and Uggla are interchangeable depending on who is more consistent. The rest of the order is balanced nicely with speed at the top and the bulk of the power coming from the 3-6 spots in the order. Cantu in the 7 hole also helps the bottom of the order by giving it some power and a .260 average or so. Haha, I couldn't agree more. That's exactly how I put my lineup in MLB2k8. Why is it that we see this so clearly but Fredi probably doesn't?
April 6, 200818 yr Out starting pitching is averaging about 4 innings a game and you guys are worried about where Uggla is hitting. :mis2
April 6, 200818 yr Author I will be satisfied if the lineup looks something like this once Maybin is called up to take over the leadoff spot. 1. Maybin 2. Hermida 3. Ramirez 4. Willingham 5. Uggla 6. Jacobs 7. Cantu 8. Rabelo/Treanor 9. Pitcher Jacobs and Uggla are interchangeable depending on who is more consistent. The rest of the order is balanced nicely with speed at the top and the bulk of the power coming from the 3-6 spots in the order. Cantu in the 7 hole also helps the bottom of the order by giving it some power and a .260 average or so. I like it, except I would have Jacobs 5th, and Uggla 6th.
April 6, 200818 yr Out starting pitching is averaging about 4 innings a game and you guys are worried about where Uggla is hitting. :mis2 Yes, because there is not much we can do about our SPs than pray. This "Uggla hitting 2nd" problem has been going on since 2006.
April 6, 200818 yr Author Out starting pitching is averaging about 4 innings a game and you guys are worried about where Uggla is hitting. :mis2 That's not Freddi's problem.
April 6, 200818 yr I will be satisfied if the lineup looks something like this once Maybin is called up to take over the leadoff spot. 1. Maybin 2. Hermida 3. Ramirez 4. Willingham 5. Uggla 6. Jacobs 7. Cantu 8. Rabelo/Treanor 9. Pitcher Jacobs and Uggla are interchangeable depending on who is more consistent. The rest of the order is balanced nicely with speed at the top and the bulk of the power coming from the 3-6 spots in the order. Cantu in the 7 hole also helps the bottom of the order by giving it some power and a .260 average or so. I like it, except I would have Jacobs 5th, and Uggla 6th. I would be pretty darn surprised to see Maybin hitting there before he becomes acclimated to the majors fully. I also think that Jacobs will probably bat cleanup no matter what changes once Hermida comes back.
April 7, 200818 yr Out starting pitching is averaging about 4 innings a game and you guys are worried about where Uggla is hitting. :mis2 Yes, because there is not much we can do about our SPs than pray. This "Uggla hitting 2nd" problem has been going on since 2006. With Uggla hitting 2nd we give up a little OBP compared to the average #2 hitter but he more than makes the small OBP shortfall with his SLG. In the perfect world he would be a bit farther down the lineup but that doesn't mean he's not a good #2 hitter.
April 7, 200818 yr Hopefully Hermida will be hitting second when he comes back. An order of Hermida-Willingham-Ramirez-Jacobs-Uggla interests me as well. You don't want Hammer in front of Hanley. If you do that, you'll turn a lot Hanley's doubles into singles and triples into doubles. If Fredo plays then it should be Fredo, Jeremy, Hanley, Hammer and then Uggla. You don't want a career .315 OBP hitter leading off. It does not matter what kind of hits Ramirez is getting as long as players with a tendency to get on base hit before him.
April 7, 200818 yr Amezega should not even be starting when we are not nursing injuries. He is a valuable player in that when we lose any player other than a catcher, he can step in, but he would not be better than Uggla as a #2 hitter. Neither of them is particularly accomplished at getting on base. Well, right now, that's not the case. And Uggla is a HORRIBLE 2nd hitter. Ever since last year, he strikes out way too much. I think he led the league in K's last year. A 2nd hitter is supposed to at least be able to put the ball in play. He was also our #3 RBI guy (#2 when you take out Cabrera) and likewise #2 (and now #1) HR hitter. He does produce runs, even if you want to put a lot of that on Cabrera & Hanley. And while I get the frustration, it's only one week. He does come out too aggressive, I'll give you that. I'd try him batting 3rd behind Hermida if he can calm it down a bit, but I guess that's the main point. Again, for all the criticism of Uggla on this board, lets not forget with a low avg and a ton of Ks, he was still one of our most productive bats and will be so again this year.
April 7, 200818 yr Hopefully Hermida will be hitting second when he comes back. An order of Hermida-Willingham-Ramirez-Jacobs-Uggla interests me as well. You don't want Hammer in front of Hanley. If you do that, you'll turn a lot Hanley's doubles into singles and triples into doubles. If Fredo plays then it should be Fredo, Jeremy, Hanley, Hammer and then Uggla. You don't want a career .315 OBP hitter leading off. It does not matter what kind of hits Ramirez is getting as long as players with a tendency to get on base hit before him. The last 2 years Fredo's OBP vs righties is about .347 which is not bad. Just platoon him and have him lead-off when he plays which would be about 3 out of 4 days or something like that.
April 7, 200818 yr Still not good enough. Ideally you want your number 2 hitters to be at around .360 or higher. Amezaga is not made for the top of the order. It is a fallacy to assume so just because he has a little bit of speed.
April 7, 200818 yr I'm pretty sure, with the OBP advantage for Alfredo and SLG advantage for Uggla, having alfredo lead off and Uggla in the middle of the order produces more runs than Uggla hitting #2 and Amezaga in the bottom of the order, but I'm too lazy to double check (might do it later). I agree that ideally you'd have two .360+ guys, but the only guys that do that for us are power guys aswell.
April 7, 200818 yr As I understand it Amezaga's value hitting eigth is in providing protection for the six and seven hitters and his working counts and patience. He's not hitting there because there's no other place for him, he's there because they want him there.
April 7, 200818 yr I'm pretty sure, with the OBP advantage for Alfredo and SLG advantage for Uggla, having alfredo lead off and Uggla in the middle of the order produces more runs than Uggla hitting #2 and Amezaga in the bottom of the order, but I'm too lazy to double check (might do it later). I agree that ideally you'd have two .360+ guys, but the only guys that do that for us are power guys aswell. I wouldn't consider Hermida a power guy.
April 7, 200818 yr As I understand it Amezaga's value hitting eigth is in providing protection for the six and seven hitters and his working counts and patience. He's not hitting there because there's no other place for him, he's there because they want him there. Agreed, Amezega is your ideal #8 hitter. He works the count and has the ability to go outside of the strike zone if need be. Until de Aza returns or Maybin is called up (which ever is first), Amezega should stay in the 8 hole.
April 7, 200818 yr I'm pretty sure, with the OBP advantage for Alfredo and SLG advantage for Uggla, having alfredo lead off and Uggla in the middle of the order produces more runs than Uggla hitting #2 and Amezaga in the bottom of the order, but I'm too lazy to double check (might do it later). I agree that ideally you'd have two .360+ guys, but the only guys that do that for us are power guys aswell. I wouldn't consider Hermida a power guy. A .501 SLGs pretty damn good, although it is mostly 2Bs.
April 7, 200818 yr I'm pretty sure, with the OBP advantage for Alfredo and SLG advantage for Uggla, having alfredo lead off and Uggla in the middle of the order produces more runs than Uggla hitting #2 and Amezaga in the bottom of the order, but I'm too lazy to double check (might do it later). I agree that ideally you'd have two .360+ guys, but the only guys that do that for us are power guys aswell. I wouldn't consider Hermida a power guy. A .501 SLGs pretty damn good, although it is mostly 2Bs. with the dimensions of our park...i LOVE guys who hit doubles left and right
April 7, 200818 yr I'm pretty sure, with the OBP advantage for Alfredo and SLG advantage for Uggla, having alfredo lead off and Uggla in the middle of the order produces more runs than Uggla hitting #2 and Amezaga in the bottom of the order, but I'm too lazy to double check (might do it later). I agree that ideally you'd have two .360+ guys, but the only guys that do that for us are power guys aswell. I wouldn't consider Hermida a power guy. A .501 SLGs pretty damn good, although it is mostly 2Bs. with the dimensions of our park...i LOVE guys who hit doubles left and right Agreed, I think Hermida is an ideal hitter for our park. He hits for contact and gets most of his power from line drives. Thus, if the ball doesn't make it out of the park, it becomes a double rather than a fly out. Some of our other guys are a little power happy. They (esp. Jacobs, Willingham) tend to use big uppercut swings which either result in a K, or ball hit in the air. Sometimes these go out of the park, other times they are just long fly balls. With the dimensions of our park, it is often the later. While I like most of our players, in our large park it is important to put the ball in play and make the outfielders get to it. If you hit the ball hard on a line, this is much harder than on a ball hit high in the air. This is something that various degrees Hanley and Uggla have also learned, as per their high double numbers from last year (Hanley (48) was helped by in his speed in this regard, Uggla (49 and 31HR) really just hit the ball HARD when he hit it). Edit: I would really prefer if Uggla wasn't hitting second, but our current roster situation doesn't present many better options. I don't want Amezaga playing everyday. Once Maybin proves himself at the back end of the lineup, I would like to see Hanley, Maybin, Hermida 1-3 in some order.
April 7, 200818 yr Author For those saying that I'm knocking Uggla too early, I'm not basing on these 1st 6 games. And note, Uggla is one of my favorite players on the team. I just hate the fact he's hitting 2nd. LAST YEAR, he led the league in K's (that's not what you want from the 2 hole hitter). Also, the he stinks with RISP comment isn't based on just this year. It's based on the fact he was terrible at it all year long last year, as well. I just wish we had a contact hitter hitting 2nd. Think of all the things Amezaga can do if Hanley gets on base. We can bunt, hit and run...etc., etc. Then you increase the power in the lineup in the bottom of the order, if you put Uggla hitting 6th, as well. I know Amezaga isn't an everyday player, but he is on this team right now, and right now, I think he's our best bet as a 2nd hitter.
April 7, 200818 yr For those saying that I'm knocking Uggla too early, I'm not basing on these 1st 6 games. And note, Uggla is one of my favorite players on the team. I just hate the fact he's hitting 2nd. LAST YEAR, he led the league in K's (that's not what you want from the 2 hole hitter). Also, the he stinks with RISP comment isn't based on just this year. It's based on the fact he was terrible at it all year long last year, as well. I just wish we had a contact hitter hitting 2nd. Think of all the things Amezaga can do if Hanley gets on base. We can bunt, hit and run...etc., etc. Then you increase the power in the lineup in the bottom of the order, if you put Uggla hitting 6th, as well. I know Amezaga isn't an everyday player, but he is on this team right now, and right now, I think he's our best bet as a 2nd hitter. For the record, I think Uggla had an off year last year, a sophomore slump and such. Uggla was generally a .280 hitter in the minors and he did that in 2006. You are only basing his stats on the worst year of his professional career, not any of the others. 2nd off, he did NOT lead the league in Ks last year. That belongs to Ryan Howard and his record setting 199 strikeouts. Also, since you mentioned RISP...Amezaga hit a gigantic .154 RISP, quite a bit worse than Uggla. Like I said before, battling the pitcher all the time is generally useless when you always lose the battle.
April 7, 200818 yr Some guys make it sound like batting 6th or 7th is a bad thing. You still hit and often with men on. That's good for a guy like Uggla who has power. Batting second means a player is likely to get an extra chance to hit. Also, you want the top of the order to have some sort of capability. I really think Amezaga is one of our weaker offensive players and don't enjoy seeing him bat before the majority of our good hitters.
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