Lineup & Platoon Analysis (6/15/21)

American League

Angels

• José Iglesias(.711 OPS) has hit fifth for four straight games.

• Max Stassi (1.013 OPS) has hit third for three straight.

Astros

• With all the main players healthy, the lineup settled with Carlos Correa moving from batting second to six or seventh.

• Myles Straw (.637 OPS, .856 in last two weeks) has started to eight of the last 10 games but that might go down with Chas McCormick (.819 OPS, 1.066 over last two week) no longer needed in a corner spot.

Athletics

• Chad Pinder (.740), Jed Lowrie (.712), and Tony Kemp (.807) are splitting the left field and second base jobs.

• Elvis Andrus’s monthly OPS has gone from .388 to .608 to .766.

Blue Jays

Stable.

• Reese McGuire (.588 OPS) is now parking himself as the regular catcher with Jansen on the IL.

Indians

• Bobby Bradley (batting 5th) is in a platoon with Yu Chang.

• Amed Rosario has started 15 straight games while batting second.

Mariners

• There is a lot going on here with promotions, trades, and IL moves.

• Dylan Moore has started three straight since returning from the IL.

• Since coming off the IL, Shed Long Jr. (.390 OPS) has started five of seven games.

• Since being traded to the Mariners, Jake Bauers (.807 OPS with Seattle) has started five straight.

• Taylor Trammell (.186/.271/.326, 1 HR, 1 CS) has hit himself into the ninth spot since his most recent callup.

Orioles

• The second base platoon is falling apart with Stevie Wilkerson struggling over the past couple of weeks (.513 OPS) while Pat Valaika has heated up (.878 OPS).

• Ryan Mountcastle (.694 OPS, .915 OPS over the past two weeks) has moved up from hitting seventh in mid-May to cleanup over the last few games. In a corresponding move, Freddy Galvis (.751 OPS, .577 OPS over the past two weeks) has moved down.

• Austin Wynns (.409 OPS) has started five of the last 10 games at catcher. I’m not sure why.

Rangers

• A few moving parts obfuscate the exact plans especially with six of their last 10 games being in the NL parks.

• Isiah Kiner-Falefa (.745 OPS, .810 over the past two weeks) is now leading off.

• Nick Solak (.689 OPS, .382 OPS over the last month) has gone from hitting second to fifth.

Rays

• Lots of the same players, just a different order every game.

• Yandy Díaz (.694 OPS) has hit second in six of the last seven games.

• Randy Arozarena (.774 OPS, 9 HR, 10 SB) is no longer leading off with Brandon Lowe and Manuel Margot splitting up that spot.

Red Sox

• Danny Santana (.460 OPS, .205 OPS over the last two weeks) has only started two of the last eight games.

• Bobby Dalbec (.649 OPS) has started nine of the last 10 games.

• Christian Arroyo (.737 OPS) has started eight straight as second base.

Royals

• Hunter Dozier is back up to hitting fifth or sixth with a .190/.288/.362 line after coming off the IL.

• Nicky Lopez (vs RHP) and Hanser Alberto (vs LHP) are in a shortstop platoon.

Tigers

• Harold Castro (.278/.320/.313) is playing every day with Jeimer Candelario on the IL.

• Daz Cameron (vs LHP) and Nomar Mazara (vs RHP) are in a platoon.

• Niko Goodrum (.208 AVG, 5 HR, 11 SB) is heading to the bench more with a .424 OPS over the past two weeks.

Twins

• Jorge Polanco (.754 OPS) has leadoff for five of the last six games.

• Gilberto Celestino (.414 OPS) has started five of the last six games in center field.

• Since being recalled from the minors, Ryan Jeffers is hitting .257/.278/.629 with 3 HR.

White Sox

• Danny Mendick (.684 OPS) has started five straight at second base.

• Brian Goodwin (1.278 OPS) has started three straight while batting second.

Yankees

• Gleyber Torres (.708 OPS, .836 OPS over the last month) has hit second or third for six straight games.

• Miguel Andújar (.691 OPS, .834 OPS over the last month) has moved up to batting sixth.

National League

Braves

• Steady lineup.

• Guillermo Heredia (.746 OPS) and Ender Inciarte (.599 OPS) are splitting time in centerfield.

Brewers

• Luis Urías (.734 OPS) and Daniel Vogelbach (.758 OPS) are hitting first and second.

• Since Travis Shaw went on the IL, Jace Peterson (.663 OPS) has started five straight games.

Cardinals

• Steady.

• Tyler O’Neill (.960 OPS) has moved up a lineup spot with Yadier Molina (.790 OPS) moving down.

• Matt Carpenter (.633 OPS, .822 OPS over the last month) has started five of the last six games at second base.

Cubs

• Against righties, Joc Pederson is leading off. He now sits against lefties.

• Sergio Alcántara (1.039 OPS) has started seven straight games.

Diamondbacks

• The team has 10 “regulars”, so no one is immune to sitting.

• Christian Walker (.558 OPS) has hit cleanup in six of the last seven starts.

Dodgers

• Injuries to Max Muncy and Cody Bellinger have the lineup in flux.

• With Muncy on the IL, Matt Beaty (.760 OPS) is now in a first base platoon with Albert Pujols.

• Gavin Lux (.701 OPS) has hit second in the last two games.

• AJ Pollock (.745 OPS) has started seven of nine games since coming off the IL.

Giants

• LaMonte Wade Jr. (.276 AVG, 3 HR) has led off for 10 of the last 11 games.

• I stared at the lineups trying to find something for 10 minutes and couldn’t figure out anything useful. Just a mess.

Marlins

• It’s consistent except Jon Berti, Isan Díaz, and Jose Devers are splitting time at second and third base.

Mets

• Luis Guillorme (.753 OPS) and Jose Peraza (.650 OPS) are splitting time at second base.

• Billy McKinney (1.049 OPS) and Mason Williams (.768 OPS) are splitting time in the outfield.

Nationals

• Kyle Schwarber (.229 AVG, 13 HR) has led off in three of the last four games.

• Josh Harrison (.274 AVG, 4 HR, 2 SB) is now batting fifth.

Padres

• Jake Cronenworth (.741 OPS, .539 OPS over the last two weeks) has been moved from the third to the seventh lineup spot.

• Jurickson Profar (.597 OPS, 1 HR, 9 SB) has not started for three games.

Phillies

• Stable.

• Ronald Torreyes (.286 AVG, 1 HR, 0 SB) has started 11 of 12 at shortstop.

Pirates

• Colin Moran (vs RHP) and Erik González (vs LHP) are in a first base platoon.

• Gregory Polanco (vs RHP) and Phillip Evans (vs LHP) are in an outfield platoon.

Reds

• Consistent.

• Jonathan India (.262/.371/.411, 5 HR, 4 SB) has leadoff for nine straight games.

Rockies

• It’s tough to figure out the lineup since Trevor Story came off the IL. It’s another case of two too many regulars and no known platoons.

• Ryan McMahon has hit fifth in five of the last six games.