This is the best lineup we've had in a while

canefandynasty · March 25, 2011

CF Coghlan

2B Infante

SS Hanley

RF Stanton

1B Sanchez

LF Morrison

C Buck

3B Helms/Bonifacio/Murphy

SP

This is truly the most exciting lineup I've seen in a while. I won't be suprised if Stanton gets 130+ RBI on the season with him hitting behind guys like Hanley and Coghlan. Our OBP machine Morrison is batting sixth! I can't believe this. Marlins will be scoring runs all day. I also like Gaby in the 5 hole. The bottom 3 doesn't look too good, but I can live with it. Coghlan is an aggressive hitter and last season was an aberration. He will get a few RBIs himself and will hit around .300. If 3B position can hit .250 then I won't be suprised if we're the best offensive team in the NL East.

Erick · March 25, 2011

I think the lineup is pretty average.

On the other hand, I think it's the best pitching we've had in awhile.

Hotcorner · March 25, 2011

except for the 3B hole I think it'll be pretty fun to watch. Not going to set any power records but they'll score runs. The two guys I'm most curious about at this point are Cogs and Morrison.

Erick · March 25, 2011

-Coghlan is rather unpredictable, at this point.

-Infante is who he is - average hitter.

-Hanley is Hanley - the one guarantee for greatness in the lineup.

-Predicting 130 RBI's for Stanton seems rather insane. Don't get me wrong, he has stud potential, but relax with the expectations. He's a second year player who still strikes out a lot. I'd expect an above average performance when it's all said and done, but he's going to have his struggles.

-Gaby is another guy who pretty much is who he is. I don't expect him to get much better from last year. Compared to other 1B, he's nothing special.

-Morrison is a great .OBP guy, but his power is a question mark, at this point.

-Buck had a career year last year. He's not a good hitter. I don't mind the contract because we had money to spend and we needed a catcher, but lets not overrate him. Horrible .OBP #'s, horrible K/BB ratios, etc. The only positive thing I can say about him is that he was better on the road last year than he was at home, so it gives me hope that maybe his power wasn't a product of playing in Toronto.

-3B sucks

Last year's lineup finished 9th in the NL in .OPS and 7th in runs scored. All in all, nothing special; this year's lineup isn't much better.

At the end of the day, the strength of the team is the pitching and that's what I'm looking forward to. Hopefully, they're able to stay healthy.

cdy_0513 · March 25, 2011

except for the 3B hole I think it'll be pretty fun to watch. Not going to set any power records but they'll score runs. The two guys I'm most curious about at this point are Cogs and Morrison.

Agreed. We're definitely going to put some pitchers through some long innings. I expect a lot out of Infante. With a much more spacious ballpark and decent speed, I think it will be a year full of extra base hits for him. When it comes down to it, if neither boner or murphy can do anything, it won't be long til we see Dom. Even if his offense isn't ready. I'd rather see a below average hitter with GG defense than a below average hitter with way below average defense. I know we don't want to rush him too much though.

Erick · March 25, 2011

If 3B position can hit .250 then I won't be suprised if we're the best offensive team in the NL East.

By the way, I just saw this statement. Unless Mike Stanton becomes an absolute beast this year, there's no way we're the best offensive team in the NL East.

The Braves lineup is much better than ours.

Assuming they're able to finally stay healthy, I think the Mets lineup would be better than ours. Then again, I guess this doesn't count because the Mets never stay healthy, so whatever.

It's actually funny because everyone basically has the Phillies as a lock for the division, but they might just have the worst offense in the division (at least, without Utley).

TrustN61 · March 25, 2011

Come on Erick. You have to admit that this is the best "lineup" we've seen in a few years. I honestly feel the wild card is CC. If he can hold up we will be fine. I know that 3B is important but I think we can get by without much offense from that position. It's all about the pitching and defense. I wish they would get rid of Helms. I wouldn't doubt if he was let go. I think his job was to get Dominguez to produce and that didn't happen. It's because Dominguez actually "shadowed" him that he was sent down.

Erick · March 25, 2011

Come on Erick. You have to admit that this is the best "lineup" we've seen in a few years. I honestly feel the wild card is CC. If he can hold up we will be fine. I know that 3B is important but I think we can get by without much offense from that position. It's all about the pitching and defense. I wish they would get rid of Helms. I wouldn't doubt if he was let go. I think his job was to get Dominguez to produce and that didn't happen. It's because Dominguez actually "shadowed" him that he was sent down.

I don't really think it is. I think the problem is people are assuming all of our second year players are going to be great, and I guess I'm not. We were all excited to have CC back for a full year in '10 and look at what happened.

There's always an adjustment period for second-year players, as the league really starts to figure them out, etc. I think Morrison and Gaby are going to be fairly steady, but I'm more worried about Stanton than most people seem to be. It seems like the popular belief is that having Stanton for a full year is going to replace Uggla's offense, and I'm not buying it. Stanton probably hits 30 HR's in his sleep because he's that awesome, but considering it's his 2nd year, he's so young, whiffs a lot, etc., it's not out of the question that he puts up a low average/mediocre .OBP #'s to go along with his great power.

The wild card is Stanton, not Coghlan. At least to me.

If Stanton reaches his potential or comes close to reaching it this year, he's the type of bat that can single-handedly carry an offense. If he has his struggles, we're going to have a lot of trouble scoring runs. After Stanton, there's very little power on this team.

Again, Gaby, Morrison, Coghlan, etc. are nice players, but they're more complimentary players offensively than guys who are going to be awesome and absolutely carry your offense. And again, popular belief outside the fanbase is that John Buck likely won't repeat his #'s of last year - I'd expect the same thing (him not repeating the #'s), really.

All in all, I'm much more confident with the pitching than I am with our lineup. I think our pitching is great. The only thing that could possibly make our pitching look bad is the fact the team is still below average, defensively.

SilverBullet · March 25, 2011

We're definitely an improved team overall. I can see an improvement of just ten wins being enough to make us serious contenders. And ten wins doesnt seem as much to get with the upgraded bullpen and the additions of Vazquez and Buck and full years from Stanton and LoMo. Add in a potentially better than 2010 Hanley, a full year of Coghlan and hopefully an at least slightly improved defense. Ten wins more than last year isnt too much to ask for.

Plus, too many people are awarding this division to the Phils already. Its silly. Great starting pitching? Yes of course. But the Marlins have always fared well against Oswalt and Hamels, Jamie Moyer is out, and the Phils are starting to age and be questionable offensively. I see the Phils as being on an eventual downturn for the next couple years. Besides Halladay and Lee, NOTHING on the Phils is a lock for this year in my eyes.

StantonisKing · March 25, 2011

1-6 I think we have a damn good lineup.

If healthy CC will have a good average, OBP and a little bit of pop - predicting .290 BA .360 OBP 8 HR

I think Infante has a good season, not as good as last year but still a valueable asset to the team - predicting .295 BA 6 HR .340 OBP

Hanley is going to be batting with runners on base alot this season and I think he blows up - predicting .325 BA .390 OBP 28 HR 115 RBI 30 SB

Big Mike will make strides - predicting .268 BA 32 HR 95 RBI

I really like what Gaby does and think he is very much underrated - predicting .285 BA 22 HR 90 RBI

Morrison will be a very good 6 hitter - predicting .290 BA .370 OBP 9 HR

I didn't like the Buck signing but he's better than what we had and will provide some pop - predicting 15 HR

Could care less who plays 3b/bats 8th at this point so I won't make a prediction.

With the rotation we have and the much improved bullpen, if our lineup is able to put up these kind of numbers(realistic IMO) we should challenge for the division.

Erick · March 25, 2011