Re: Who bats 9th?
jack,
i agree with what you have said (to a degree) since my post, but i don't think that a lineup is going to ever be concrete.
for instance some teams will hide their worst hitter (a defensive guy) in the 8th spot to try and open up big innings in different ways. having two speed guys go 9-1-2 to start an inning is a very dangerous thing and very scary to pitchers, a lot of big innings start this way. for instance, if the 9 and 1 hole scrap their way on now a traditional 2 hole who typically is known for handling a bat very well has many options...with speed on the bases he can hit & run, run & hit--this opens up the field and produces a lot of holes...if he is left handed (a lot of 2 hole hitters are) this gives him a chance to hit behind the runner to move them over--now that gap between 1st and 2nd has expanded greatly b/c of the speed on the bases (having to hold them on).
i am just saying that lineups have been effective in many ways and you can't just say put your worst hitter last. sometimes you need to be creative with what you have.
as for david ortiz and him being in the 2 hole, there is a good reason for that. first off i have him in the 3 hole instead of the 4 hole so that he does get more at bats and actually sacrifice a few RBI's which is the very reason he is in the 3 hole and not batting in the 2 hole. at the end of the season his RBI total is way more valuable than his at bat total and you simply will not get the RBI's batting second or barry bonds, a-rod, manny and every great power guy in the league would be batting leadoff instead of even second. mueller's couple extra ab's mean virtually nothing but ortiz's tons of extra chances with mean in scoring position not only mean a ton to his stats but the team as well.
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