With a little bit of a lull in things to get immediately excited about in Boston sports and the official announcement that Andy Pettite will retire, now is a perfect time to begin the guessing game of which Red Sox batters will bat where. Here’s what I think should happen:
- Jacoby Ellsbury
Historically more comfortable at leading off than he is anywhere else in the lineup, why not give the speedster what he wants and put the pressure on him? I know the addition of Carl Crawford will give people the idea that the Sox should hit him lead off, but who was the last $20M player paid to hit singles? I say put Crawford later on in the order where he can develop his bat into more of a power threat. Sure I want both guys to steal bases, and that’s why I wouldn’t hit CC third either.
- Dustin Pedroia
I’m again leaning on history’s side here. Dusty should not move from the #2 spot any more than Prince Fielder should stop focusing on his veggie diet and start focusing on the treadmill. Fortunately for us, there’s about as much chance in Fielder ceasing his burger-less diet as there is a chance that Terry Francona moves Pedey anywhere. Laser show, relax.
- Adrian Gonzalez
Theo Epstein went out and got this guy for a reason: he can hit. I will grant that he can also field a gold-glove first base, but truly, seeing this guy swing is like seeing a tutorial on how to hit in Fenway Park. Give him the AB’s in the 3 hole and nobody will be disappointed with his averages, on base and power-wise.
- David Ortiz
Papi popped 30 HR last year and there is no reason to believe he won’t do it again. Adrian is going to need protection at the dish, and so it is with great faith in David Ortiz that I place him in the cleanup role. It is, after all, where he wants to be. Papi has a chip on his shoulder from the one year deal he got this offseason. He needs to show the league he can still rake. Here’s to hoping he can.
- Carl Crawford
The second of the tandem of offseason splashes the Sox made in 2010, Carl Crawford should be a force to be reckoned with on the field and at the plate come springtime. CC’s combination of speed and power will allow him to back up Papi well, ensuring no auto-walks of Ortiz. I’m sure at this point there will be cries of “this lineup is too left-handed” and “the Sox like to go lefty-righty all the way through.” Well to those people I ask you this, as an opposing closer, do you walk Ortiz to get to Youkilis or would you rather walk him to get to Crawford? Youk is a great hitter for sure, but what better to back the lead-footed Ortiz with the fleet-footed Crawford? Youk is likely to try and draw the second walk in that situation, whereas CC will be aggressive. No risk, no reward.
- Kevin Youkilis
YOUUUUUUK! The best hitting sixth man in any lineup in all of baseball in 2011. No joke, Youk is going to be able to pace himself in this role, he will draw a ton of walks because of who’s behind him as well as hit for his usual .300+ with a bunch of dingers. Look for Youk to rack up the RBI’s this year hitting behind the modern day Murderer’s Row.
- Jason Varitek
V-Tek isn’t the primary choice for catcher—yet. Jarrod Saltalamacchia is the front-runner, I know, but to me, he has at least as much as Tek to prove offensively. Defensively Tek is much more solid than Salty, so to begin the year at least, look for the older guy in the lineup. I like him in the 7 hole due to his versatility in batting on both sides of the plate. Also, if you look at the number of AB’s Tek got, he isn’t too far off of his form from a few years ago comparatively.
- JD Drew
The Drew Era is almost over, and I’m excited about it. For now, he is the starting right fielder at Fenway and the BoSox will do just fine with him hitting eighth. Top 10 overall OPS? Whatever it is, it sure isn’t exciting baseball.
- Marco Scutaro
Until Jose Iglesias makes his trip up to the majors at the tail end of the year, look to Scuts to hit ninth. He has a steady hand at short and at the plate. I wouldn’t want him there when the game is on the line, but then I would say that for any #9 hitter.
That’s my lineup for the 2011 Boston Red Sox. I’ll be the first to admit that there could be some shuffling around, though I remain pitbullish on a few items, namely Jacoby hitting first and Pedroia second, but I would like to hear what you think. Is this lineup totally idiotic? Will we see something entirely different on Opening Day? Let me know what you think.