I really think Waker is the #2 hitter on this club
Hurdle insists he's not a full-blown stats wonk. But his eyes lit up when he saw Jones' career .852 on-base plus slugging percentage against right-handed pitchers. The big stick Jones can swing is nice, but what Hurdle craves are men on base ahead of No. 3 hitter McCutchen.
“When you construct a lineup, there are protection issues and skill sets you want to match up — how can you best protect certain players, strengthen your lineup, stretch it out from top to bottom,” Hurdle said. “It's either second or sixth for Jones. It's hard for me to hit a guy with an (.852) OPS against right-handers sixth.”
Walker, whose career OPS against right-handers is .795, said he doesn't mind batting sixth.
“I can be a little more aggressive,” Walker said. “If I'm hitting in the six hole, that's a pretty good sign for this lineup. I like the way our lineup stacks up.”
Walker's RBI ability makes him a good choice at either No. 2 or 6. Hurdle said putting the switch-hitting Walker sixth creates more options to counter-punch against left-handed relievers.
Read more: http://triblive.com/sports/pirates/3...#ixzz2PKL6ifPQ
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook Pretty much why Jones was batting #2. I still like Walker in the second spot. He is a switch hitter, and while better from the left side, sets the table for Cutch and Pedro behind him.
Remember as well thAt Jay Bell has a big say into this now, and considering that thjis lineup varies differently than much of what we've seen Hurdle trot out ther,e I think Jay bwell had a big hand in this.
I don't care how well Gaby Sanchez does in Spring Training (since ST is useless to base stats and such on), he shouldnt be hitting against righties. He hit .197 against Right Handed starting pitching in 2012 where your other options are Jose Tabata (batted .246 against Righty starters in 2012). Admittedly, Travis Snider was lousy against righties to the point where his stats suggest a platoon hitter.
My biggest concern is whether Pedro can be a 4 hitter right now. He's a career .135 hitter from the #4 spot with a dreadful .446 OPS. From the #5 spot he hits a .272 (his best batting average from any spot in the lineup) and an 812 OPS (his 2nd best next to batting #6)
If Pedro can do it, great, but the optimum lineup based on what each of these players has shown to be able to do to this point is "
1. Marte
2. Walker/Tabata
3. McCutchen
4. Jones/Sanchez
5. Alvarez
6. Tabata/Walker
7. Martin
8. Barmes
Tabata is a career .294 hitter from the #2 spot with a .774 OPS. He's got 500 PA's there compared to just a few more (592) batting #1 where he's a .258 career hitter. not enough sample size for him as a #6. Walker is a good #2 and #5 hitter. He's barely batted #6 but there's no reason why he wouldn't be good there.
That's how i would do it. When Snider plays, put him in the #2 spot where he has a career .293 Batting Average (far better than where he's hit anywhere else) and a .861 OPS
with Snider :
1. Marte
2. Snider
3. McCutchen
4. Jones/Sanchez
5. Alvarez
6. Walker
7. Martin
8. Barmes
A somewhat unrelated point, but Bob Walk (I had to listen on radio yesterday) kept harping on the fact that the Cubs kept putting on the shift to left handers, giving the Buccos free bunt base hits toward 3rd that they did not once attempt. When the opposing pitcher is shutting you down and striking out 9 why wouldn't CH at least try to get people on base that way? Don't get me wrong, I love what Hurdle brings to the team, but with that and the lineup he penciled in yesterday, sometimes I just---------------wonder.
Originally Posted by battlingbucs
This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. ://" onclick="kh99_iqts_show('287894_1'); return false;">Show Quote I would swap Snider and Martin (or have Marte hitting lower but that is a battle I've given up on that). The three lefties in a row isn't really ideal.
Something we agree on for once. I'm hoping that was all Hurdle was doing but I could see him trotting out Sanchez rather frequently against a right hander. Agree on Snider as well but I have to wonder just how is he going to get it going sitting on the bench? I think at a minimum he gives the Pirates the same production against right handed pitching that Sanchez will.
Sndier hit .255 in Spring training. It's not like he was terrible. He had 1 less hit than Sanchez in 4 more PA's. Sanchez hit for a lot of power but do we even know if it were against lefties, righties, both?
