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June 11, 2011 Lineup Joe Janish

Tonight’s Mets Lineup vs. Pirates

Here is the lineup the New York Mets will send to the plate against Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher James McDonald:

Jose Reyes – SS
Ruben Tejada – 2B
Carlos Beltran – RF
Daniel Murphy – 3B
Angel Pagan – CF
Jason Bay – LF
Lucas Duda – 1B
Ronny Paulino – C
R.A. Dickey – RHP

Interesting to see Ruben Tejada in the #2 spot. Also interesting to see the corner infield spots manned by Lucas Duda at 1B and Dan Murphy at 3B. Why is on-fire Angel Pagan so far down? Why is he not getting a guaranteed at-bat in the first inning? I know there are people who think there actually is something to the thought that you want good hitters around when the table setters are on base, but it really doesn’t follow any logic whatsoever. The best hitters should get the most chances to hit — that’s it. After that, apply whatever insanity you want.

Joe Janish began MetsToday in 2005 to provide the unique perspective of a high-level player and coach -- he earned NCAA D-1 All-American honors as a catcher and coached several players who went on to play pro ball. As a result his posts often include mechanical evaluations, scout-like analysis, and opinions that go beyond the numbers. Follow Joe's baseball tips on Twitter at @onbaseball and at the On Baseball Google Plus page.
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  1. Joe June 11, 2011 at 5:46 pm
    How much more “on fire” is he than the ones who aren’t getting a crack at it? Since the Mets are pinging pitchers to get runs, wouldn’t it be logical to space them around so that they bat them in? The fact Pagan gets one less at bat is going to change much in the alternative when again this is likely to mean one less single or double hit?
    • Joe June 11, 2011 at 5:51 pm
      Reyes is going to be your lead-off hitter, so Pagan is two or three? If anything, I find it strange he is ahead of Bay, since it would make sense for Bay to get more protection.
    • Joe Janish June 11, 2011 at 11:28 pm
      Pagan is the Mets’ second-best hitter (to Reyes) right now. You don’t bat your second-best hitter fifth, especially when he is also your second-best baserunner.

      And I don’t care that Tejada got on base three times in this game and Pagan was hitless — it doesn’t make it correct. The top of the lineup right now should start with Reyes and Pagan because they are the two most dangerous and prolific all-around offensive players. Spacing around hitters for the sake of spacing them around is completely illogical; it’s nearly as inane as Jerry Manuel’s ridiculous insistence on setting up lineups lefty/righty/lefty/righty/lefty etc.