I was thinking the same thing last night, with the differences being Aki ahead of Navarro. I’m still not convinced Aki isn’t a good fit at the leadoff spot though… I think he needs a little more time.

and would hurt some grown men’s feelings. Two things Joe Maddon is incapable of.

I know what you are thinking and on the surface it makes sense. but there is more to leading off than just a good OBP.

They can’t and won’t do it.

Being the leadoff hitter is the one spot in the lineup that requires a different approach at the plate (that is why CC refuses to do it). It requires a player to take pitches. To almost sacrifice himself a bit for the better of the rest of the lineup. Dirtbag would have to cut down on his swing and worry more about getting on base which risks a change in his mechanics at the plate.

We are talking about a 22-year old kid that has batted in an RBI slot his entire career. They can’t all of the sudden move him to the leadoff spot after 3 weeks in the big leagues just out of team need having never done it before. And they can’t do it if he is expected to be an RBI guy down the road. He is struggling a bit at the plate now which is just another reason that he cant be moved to a spot that will force a change in approach and then expect to move him back to an RBI spot later on and change his approach again.

your better option is Bartett who is an EXCELLENT base runner and has a .400 OBP in the past week.

Gabe Gross: he’s due to raise his batting average; already has a .341 OBP in 85 plate appearances this season (better than Iwamura or Crawford currently and has a history of patience) despite terrible batting average; takes a ton of pitches (bad and good); decent speed; not much power lost at the bottom of the order.

Actually, I’d rather they leave Iwamura where he’s at. He’s been hitting much better of late and now is not the time to move him.

it is more than walks and OBP

It is being told to take pitches EVERY at bat. it is reigning in the swing a bit for the sake of doing whatever it takes to get on base for RBI guys. RBI guys like Longoria.

this is why batting leadoff is such a big deal even though a leadoff batter only leadsoff an inning once or twice a game. it is because, the best hitters are coming. 95% of managers want their leadoff batter sacrificing themselves a bit. yes getting on base is important. but there is also the need to make the pitcher throw more pitches. to work the pitcher where 3-6 hitters don’t have to.

and i am not saying Bartlett is ideal. i am just saying more likely than Longoria.

Great thoughts and reads amungst the deep thinkers. Supposing Aki is moved out of the lead off spot as he should be, I’ve (we’ve, I’ll explain) toyed with the line up many times and through many bar room discussions. While eating at Beef O Brady’s after a softball game this W/E and pounding down a few pints, eh? We (softball team) agreed on the best line up top to bottom during the weekend after the “K” ratio and plate dicipline in whinerville spun out of control.

Away we go….

1- Upton – great plate dicipline, speed, hits for avg. His patience makes him a lead off hitter.
2- Crawford – We’d make him take the 1st strike by not allowing him to carry the bat to the plate until a strike is thrown. Could you imagine his numbers if he swung at strikes?
3- Hinske – A true professional hitter. Your best “hitter” bats 3rd. As of right now, it’s Hinske.
4- Pena – 46 HR’s last season, ‘nuff said.
5- Longoria – walks alot for swinging at sooooo many ba’ad pitches. But his swing is so choice. What bat speed!
6- Gomes – If Johnny, C.C. & Aki would learn patience and swing at strikes, what hitters they would be.
7- Navarro – I thought fat boy got in shape this off season? John Kruk Jr. is sure looking good at the plate.
8- Iwamura – Isn’t Brian Roberts still on the market? We need production at 2B. Aki aint the answer.
9- Bartlett – Jasons going to hit. Love his glove at SS. I like him leading off too, just change his approach batting lead off.

The BIG concern is the 2-3-4 hitters all being LH. The 6-9 hitters wouldn’t scare off too many teams. Floyd will fill in nice when he’s mended or just sign Barry already! I’ll drive the 60 miles to go watch a living legend play camera in hand! So will my entire softball team, love him or hate’m he’s an attraction!

Great pitching by Andy yesterday. What a colossal blast by “Eric the Ray”!

Best surprises: Percival, Hinske (TIE)

Biggest disappointment: Garza, Iwamura

He should go down to the 6-7 hole for now which will be easy once Floyd reappears.

The guys who fit best at leadoff are probably Bartlett and Aki. They should hit 1 and 9 interchangeably. Neither are league average as leadoff hitters but both are serviceable in the long run.

Small sampling of statistics can me misleading. I prefer to look for the guy whose approach produces good ABs and scoring chances.

This is an organization that does not panic. They do not rush about changing things because of a good or bad streak. If they think Iwamura has the stuff to be a good leadoff hitter they will stick with him for a while or until they see something in his approach that indicates their initial judgment was wrong.

It doesn’t mean they won’t take advantage of Bartlett’s recent improvement, but it will not be so much because of the improvement as because they rethink their evaluation of Iwamura. The stats on his performance in the leadoff position are too scanty to be a determinant at this point.

I think it’s interesting that for two years there was a lot of criticism of Maddon for what appeared constant experimentation and alteration of player roles and lineups. Now, when the object is to establish stability, many people want constant switching of gears based on a month’s performance. My impression is that once he makes a decision, he will give it ample time to prove itself.