Archive for Lineups

There is a hitter who has recently worked his way into regular playing time for the Diamondbacks who has a 1.236 OPS over the last 30 days…and he’s owned in fewer than 12 percent of the leagues on ESPN, Yahoo and CBS. Read about this mystery player, as well as other National League hitters seeing changes in playing time just below.

Arizona

Wilmer Flores has emerged as the regular at second base, as he has started six of the last eight games there. That has pushed Eduardo Escobar back making third base his full-time position and Ketel Marte into more starts in center field. Jake Lamb has been the biggest playing time loser, but it has also meant a slight reduction in playing time for Jarrod Dyson and Adam Jones, who are now vying for starts in right field. Flores has earned the more prominent role, as he has gone 24 for 59 (.407) with six home runs since Aug. 14.
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The Mets and Giants have new-look outfields, and the Diamondbacks must now figure out how to make room for Jake Lamb. These recent lineup changes, along with many others, are detailed just below.

Arizona

Christian Walker’s fantasy owners have probably been a bit nervous in recent weeks, knowing that Lamb’s return from the IL was coming soon. That day arrived on Wednesday, and in fact, it was Walker who was forced out of the lineup to accommodate Lamb at first base. It’s not clear how Torey Lovullo is going to split Lamb’s and Walker’s time at first base, but it is conceivable that Lamb could also play some third base. That would shift Eduardo Escobar to second base, with Jarrod Dyson sitting more often to make way for Ketel Marte in center field.
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How will the Rockies make do with two of their infielders hurt? How are the Marlins using the newest member of their outfield? These questions and many others are answered in this week’s set of National League lineup analyses!

Arizona

Jarrod Dyson sat on Thursday against Jeff Hoffman and the Rockies, and that was only the third time in the last 16 games against a right-handed starter that he was left out of the starting lineup. He has started twice in place of Adam Jones in right field, with all of the other starts coming in center field. That bodes well for Dyson to start all three games against the Giants this weekend, as they are scheduled to go with an all-righty contingent of Jeff Samardzija, Tyler Beede and Shaun Anderson.
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Some weekend IL moves could disturb the tranquility in the Rockies’ and Pirates’ outfields, while the Cubs have already made a notable shift there. Here’s the weekly NL lineup breakdown.

Arizona

Christian Walker has started seven games in a row, so even with Kevin Cron back up from the minors, there is no apparent first base controversy. Cron could fill the DH slot for this weekend’s series in Toronto, and it would not be surprising if he got sent down afterwards.
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You’ve been waiting for it…Gabe Kapler finally made a change to his lineup, and it’s not one of those one-and-done types of changes. That — and some changes impacting catchers — are among the more notable developments in National League lineups this week.

Arizona

There are no major changes here. With Wilmer Flores (foot) going on the IL, there is an opportunity for Ildemaro Vargas to get some starts against left-handed starters. Perhaps Ketel Marte will play a little more often at second base, giving Jarrod Dyson a slight boost in playing time in center field. Maybe Dyson’s start against left-handed Matt Strahm on Tuesday was more than just a random occurrence.
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The past week in lineups has featured some interesting developments, including a couple of bottom-of-the-order hitters being highly productive and the outfield mixes for the Padres and Giants shifting a bit. I’m breaking the lineups down, team-by-team, starting…now.

Arizona

With Jake Lamb (quad) out for at least five more weeks, first base appears to belong to Christian Walker, as he had started every game since Lamb went on the IL up until Thursday night’s game against the Padres. Jarrod Dyson has started six of the seven games with a right-handed starter, all in center field. That hasn’t resulted in a reduced role for Ketel Marte, as he has started every game so far, playing second base when Dyson is in center field. It’s Wilmer Flores who has gotten squeezed out of playing time, starting only seven of the team’s 13 games.
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