Lineup Analysis (6/22/21)

American League

Angels

• Taylor Ward (.932 OPS over the last two weeks) has hit third in four straight games.

• Luis Rengifo (.559 OPS) has started four straight.

• Juan Lagares (.575 OPS) has started eight of nine games.

Astros

• Chas McCormick (.762 OPS) has hit second in four of the last five games.

• Abraham Toro (.333/.400/.444) is playing third base with Alex Bregman on the IL.

Athletics

• Tony Kemp (.853 OPS), Chad Pinder (.691), Jed Lowrie (.685), and Seth Brown (.672) are splitting time at second base and one outfield spot.

Blue Jays

• Steady.

• Santiago Espinal (.278/.337/.356) has started four straight at third base but that will likely end once George Springer comes off the IL.

Indians

• Two outfield spots are being shared by Harold Ramirez (.797 OPS), Josh Naylor (.698 OPS), and Bradley Zimmer (.609 OPS).

• Bobby Bradley (1.005 OPS, 5 HR) has started nine straight at first base.

Mariners

• Dylan Moore has started eight of nine games at second base hitting .233/.343/.467 with 2 SB and 1 HR over that time frame.

• Jake Bauers has started 11 straight since joining Seattle. He’s hitting .326/.356/.419 with 1 HR and SB during that time.

• Shed Long Jr. (.718 OPS) has started eight straight.

• Taylor Trammell is hitting .151/.224/.264 during his second MLB callup.

Orioles

• Freddy Galvis (.740 OPS) hits second or third against lefties.

• It seems like Austin Hays (vs LHP) and DJ Stewart (vs RHP) are in a platoon.

Rangers

• Nate Lowe (.729 OPS) has hit second in four of the last five games.

• Willie Calhoun (.189/.250/.243, 0 HR, 0 SB over the last two weeks) has been slowly moving down the lineup.

• Brock Holt (.649 OPS) and Charlie Culberson (.627 OPS) are splitting time at third base.

Rays

• Unpredictable and is getting Wander Franco will just make it harder.

• Manual Margot (.687 OPS, 6 for 10 in stolen base attempts) is about as regular as it gets for Tampa by starting in 12 of the last 14 games. Against lefties, he leads off.

Red Sox

• Steady except for the second base/centerfield revolving mix including Christian Arroyo (.756 OPS), Danny Santana (.478 OPS), and Enrique Hernandez (.691 OPS).

Royals

• Steady where healthy.

Kelvin Gutierrez and his .588 OPS have started 16 straight games. pic.twitter.com/hwBtlHY9lg

— Jeff Zimmerman (@jeffwzimmerman) June 22, 2021

• Michael A. Taylor (.613 OPS) has started 13 of 14 games.

Tigers

• Akil Baddoo (.853 OPS) and Nomar Mazara (.603 OPS) are both mainly facing righties. Eric Haase (.803 OPS) will move from catcher to the outfield when facing a lefty.

• The Tigers have gone with a different shortstop in the last four games (Isaac Paredes, Willi Castro, Harold Castro, and Niko Goodrum).

• Since being called up, Daz Cameron (.725 OPS) has started seven of 11 games.

Twins

• Luis Arraez (.715 OPS) has started six straight since coming off the IL.

• Trevor Larnach (.777 OPS, 4 HR) is now batting third.

• Miguel Sanó (.187/.269/.430, 14 HR) is only starting against lefties.

White Sox

• The Sox randomly stick a player in the second slot, but on Sunday, they pushed up Yoán Moncada and José Abreu with Brian Goodwin hitting cleanup.

• With both Adam Eaton and Adam Engel on the IL, it seems like Leury García and Jake Lamb will be sharing an outfield spot.

Yankees

• Gleyber Torres (.252/.331/.332) has been moved down from the third to the fifth spot. Gary Sánchez (.820 OPS) is now batting third.

• There will be some movement with Luke Voit returning. I expect DJ LeMahieu to move to second base thereby eliminating any playing time for Rougned Odor. As long as everyone stays healthy, I expect the lineup to remain consistent.

National League

Braves

• Abraham Almonte (.881 OPS) is now batting cleanup.

• Guillermo Heredia (.808 OPS) is back to playing every day with Ender Inciarte (.570 OPS) on the bench.

Brewers

• Since coming off the IL, Kolten Wong has been hitting leadoff and Luis Urías has moved down to hitting seventh.

• Daniel Vogelbach didn’t face the last lefty starter, but it’s just the second lefty the team has faced since June 3rd. I’m not sure if it’s a trend or just a normal day off.

Cardinals

• Steady.

• Edmundo Sosa (.660 OPS) has started six of seven games at second base.

Cubs

• Eric Sogard (.595 OPS) and Sergio Alcántara (.804 OPS) are splitting time at second base.

• Patrick Wisdom (.596 OPS the last week) has only started five of the last 10 games.

• Ian Happ (.636 OPS) has started only seven of the last 10 games.

Diamondbacks

• They have a couple too many healthy bats, so everyone is getting time off. It’s only going to get more crowded with Kole Calhoun coming off the IL soon.

• Since returning from the IL, Asdrúbal Cabrera (.755 OPS) has started eight of 12 games.

Dodgers

• Steven Souza Jr. (vs lefties) and Zach McKinstry (vs righties) are in a right-field platoon.

• With Max Muncy out, Gavin Lux (.657 OPS, .773 over the past two weeks) has been primarily batting second.

Giants

• The whole lineup will change tonight with Alex Dickerson and Darin Ruf coming off the IL. Also, LaMonte Wade Jr and Jason Vosler were demoted. Also, the Giants face three lefty starters this week, so Steven Duggar will only start two games. With Vosler down, Wilmer Flores (.762 OPS) might get full-time at-bats at third base. Nothing will be the same.

• Since returning from the IL, Mike Yastrzemski (.837 OPS) is hitting second and Brandon Belt (.893 OPS) third.

Marlins

• Since returning from the IL, Miguel Rojas (.746 OPS) is batting fifth.

• Jesús Sánchez (.591 OPS) is batting fifth after being recalled from AAA.

• Jon Berti (.662 OPS) has started three straight at third base. He might not steal many bases since he’s hitting eighth, right before the pitcher.

Mets

• Pay attention here with several major players returning from the IL.

• Jeff McNeil got slotted into the third lineup spot and second base in his first game back. Jose Peraza’s fantasy value just got killed.

• Until Conforto and Nimmo return, the outfield has two platoons. Billy McKinney (.854 OPS) and Dominic Smith (.695 OPS) are facing righties while Albert Almora Jr. (.306 OPS) and Brandon Drury (.536 OPS) start against lefties.

Nationals

• Holding steady.

• Yan Gomes (.714 OPS) has gone from batting seventh to batting fifth.

Padres

• The team is “healthy” and has a couple of extra fielders to work in with no one immune to getting a day off.

• Jake Cronenworth (.796 OPS,1.005 OPS over the last two weeks) has hit third in the last three games.

• Wil Myers (.740 OPS) has started in 12 of the last 13 games.

Phillies

• With Jean Segura on the IL, Rhys Hoskins (.778 OPS) is hitting second. Luke Williams (vs LHP, .935 OPS) and Brad Miller (vs RHP, .752 OPS) are splitting the second base duties.

• Alec Bohm hasn’t been horrible over the past two weeks with a .760 OPS.

Pirates

• A team of bad hitters splitting up playing time. Just a few (Frazier, Hayers, Reynolds, Stallings) fantasy-relevant players.

• Colin Moran (.790 OPS), Phillip Evans (.621 OPS), and Erik González (.551 OPS) are each splitting time at first base.

Reds

• Since Joey Votto has been back, Tucker Barnhart and Tyler Stephenson are in a strict catcher platoon.

• Tyler Naquin continues to sit against lefties.

Rockies

• Garrett Hampson (.251/.307/.439) has been removed from the top of the lineup and has only started three times in the last eight days.

• Yonathan Daza (.786 OPS) is now hitting second.

• Brendan Rodgers (.721 OPS) has started in eight of the last 10 games.