Lineup Analysis (4/15/22)

For this first edition, I mainly noted obvious platoons since there has not been a baseline set for guys moving up or down the lineup.

American League

Angels

• Tyler Wade has sat against lefties with Matt Duffy starting.

• Jose Rojas, Jo Adell, and Brandon Marsh are cycling through two outfield spots.

• With David Fletcher on the IL, Andrew Velazquez is starting at short and batting ninth.

Astros

• Jose Siri (vs LHP) and Chas McCormick (vs RHP) are in a centerfield platoon.

• Aledmys Díaz has started five of six games and played five different positions (1B, 2B, 3B, DH, LF). He got some extra playing time because Yuli Gurriel was on the IL, but he is giving everyone a break and playing 80% of the time. He’s a nice multi-position bench bat (see Josh Harrison). I’d wait another week before rostering to see if he keeps playing.

Athletics

• Sean Murphy has started every game, two at DH.

• Third base is a mess. Kevin Smith has been struggling (.153 OPS) so Sheldon Neuse (.889 OPS) started a couple of games against righties. Smith started the last two against lefties.

• The team has faced two lefties and Seth Brown did start against one of them.

Blue Jays

• Steady at the top.

• Teoscar Hernández is on the IL, so how the outfield playing time shakes out has yet to be determined.

• Santiago Espinal (.638 OPS) has taken over the second base job from Cavan Biggio (.333 OPS).

Guardians

• Ernie Clement (vs LHP) and Andrés Giménez (vs RHP) are in a second base platoon.

• Owen Miller has started four straight games at first base over Bobby Bradley.

• Oscar Mercado has started five straight games and his hitting (.200/.200/.680)

Mariners

• They have only faced one lefty starter, so the platoons aren’t written in stone.

• Adam Frazier might be sitting against lefties.

• Dylan Moore (vs LHP) and Jesse Winker (vs RHP) may be in a left-field platoon.

• Abraham Toro (started four of seven) seems to be the “sub”. He has filled in at second and third. He either gives that player a rest or pushes them to DH and Mitch Haniger gives an outfield a day off.

Orioles

• Kelvin Gutierrez (vs LHP) and Rougned Odor (vs RHP) are in a platoon with Ramón Urías moving between second and third base (<—).

Rangers

• Nick Solak (vs LHP) and Brad Miller (vs RHP) are in a left-field platoon.

• Mitch Garver has been the DH twice and started five of six games.

• Willie Calhoun (vs RHP) and Charlie Culberson (vs LHP) are in a platoon with Andy Ibáñez moving around the field to accommodate it.

Rays

• Drink.

• Ji-Man Choi (vs RHP) and Harold Ramirez (vs LHP) are in a first base platoon.

• Still a mess. Next week, I’ll just look into most games started since the season began.

Red Sox

• Jackie Bradley Jr. (vs RHP) and Christian Arroyo (vs LHP) might be in a left-field platoon.

Royals

• Consistent but have yet to face a lefty starter.

Tigers

• Austin Meadows sat against the first lefty with Eric Haase in the outfield instead.

Twins

• It’s tough to draw a firm conclusion with the Alex Kirilloff injury, but it seems like the team is cycling players through the DH spot. Gary Sanchez has not caught three games and was the DH in two of them.

• Surprisingly Max Kepler has started all six games with three coming against a lefty starter.

White Sox

• Gavin Sheets (vs RHP) and Andrew Vaughn (vs LHP) may be in a platoon. It’s a little tough to tell with the team dealing with several injuries.

Yankees

• The team still has one too many healthy regulars. Right now, the day off is being spread around with DJ LeMahieu moving around the field. Several times the infielder moved to DH and Giancarlo Stanton moved to the outfield.

National League

Braves

• Alex Dickerson (vs RHP) and Orlando Arcia (vs LHP) are in a DH platoon.

Brewers

• Lorenzo Cain (vs RHP) and Tyrone Taylor (vs LHP) are in a center field platoon.

• Jace Peterson (vs RHP) and Mike Brosseau (vs LHP) are in a third base platoon.

• Keston Hiura (vs LHP) and Rowdy Tellez (vs RHP) might be in a first base platoon.

• Victor Caratini (vs LHP) and Omar Narváez (vs RHP) are in a catcher platoon.

Cardinals

• Steady.

Cubs

• Clint Frazier (vs LHP) and Rafael Ortega (vs RHP) are in a DH platoon.

• Michael Hermosillo (vs LHP) and Jason Heyward (vs RHP) are in a CF platoon.

Diamondbacks

• Cooper Hummel (vs LHP) and Seth Beer (vs RHP) are in a DH platoon.

• There might be another platoon or two but it’s tough to know for sure.

Dodgers

• Steady lineup and only faced a lefty on Opening Day.

Giants

• Austin Slater (vs LHP) and Mike Yastrzemski (vs RHP) are in an outfield platoon.

• Joc Pederson (vs RHP) and Heliot Ramos (vs LHP) are in another outfield platoon.

• For some reason, Brandon Belt (vs RHP) and Luke Williams (vs LHP) seem to be in a platoon with Wilmer Flores moving around the infield to accommodate it. Hopefully, Belt is getting the extra days off to rest at the season’s start.

Marlins

• Joey Wendle has only started against righties.

Mets

• If all the regulars are in, two of Robinson Canó, Dominic Smith, and J.D. Davis must sit.

Nationals

• Yadiel Hernandez, Lane Thomas, and Victor Robles are splitting time between two outfield spots.

Padres

• Ha-Seong Kim 김하성 (vs LHP) and C.J. Abrams (vs RHP) are in a shortstop platoon.

• Austin Nola has hit second in four of the last five games.

Phillies

• Steady.

• Alec Bohm has only started two games.

Pirates

• Michael Chavis (LHP) and Daniel Voglebach (vs RHP) are in a DH platoon.

• In just six games, the team has used four different second basemen (Park, VanMeter, Castillo, Tucker) and three different right fielders (Park, Marisnick, Tucker).

Reds

• Aristides Aquino (vs LHP) and Jake Fraley (vs RHP) are in a right-field platoon. Aquino has played more with Tommy Pham hurt.

Rockies

• Steady with the only question is who of Randal Grichuk, Sam Hilliard, and Yonathan Daza is playing center field on any given night.