What the Yankees lineup should be- PROVEN STATS

Paul1355

All Star
Not many sites show situational hitting statistics, for example RISP-runners in scoring position which is something the Yankees have a problem with. Everytime the Yankees lose they usually leave many men on base which is sickning because we have so many all-stars on this team. Statisitic wise, I have composed a lineup that may seem odd at first but stats wise it makes the most sense. I will explain at the bottom of the lineup why each player goes were.

VS LHP

1- Ivan Rodriguez-C
2- Robinson Cano-2B
3- Alex Rodriguez-3B
4- Xavier Nady-LF
5- Richie Sexson-1B
6- Bobby Abreu-RF
7- Derek Jeter-SS
8- Justin Christian-DH
9- Melky Cabrera-CF

VS RHP
1- Ivan Rodriguez-C
2- Alex Rodriguez-3B
3- Johnny Damon-DH
4- Xavier Nady-LF
5- Bobby Abreu-RF
6- Derek Jeter-SS
7- Jason Giambi-1B
8- Robinson Cano-2B
9- Melky Cabrera-CF

Ok lets get to the reasoning...I checked out stats with RISP in every category and stats with AVG vs left handed and right handed pitchers.
Let's talk about each player and why they are in each spot in the lineup:

Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez- Hits .322 with no runners on base and hits horrible when they're on base, so batting 1st is his best spot, even though he isnt bullet fast. He has 6 stolen bases but I'd take hitting over speed anyday at the 1 spot.
Derek Jeter- Jeter's numbers are good but he has hit into alot of double plays leading the team with 16. So making him a priority bat is a thing in the past. He has ruined alot of rallies but at the same time maintains a good AVG with RISP. I put him at the bottom middle of the lineup so that players with better RISP numbers can get more shots. He would still get oppurtunties and chances to come through in clutch spots.
Alex "A-Rod" Rodriguez- His RISP numbers are horrible for a guy of his talent hitting .255 with RISP and .233 with RISP and 2 outs, dont forget his large amount of strikeouts. But he kills left handed pitchers and putting him at the 3 spot in the LHP lineup takes pressure of him as a clean up hitter. Against the RHP, A-rod has struggled with his RISP avg so he is no longer a clean up man right now even with his amount of homeruns. At the 2 spot he will get better pitches to hit and lose the pressure spot at the clean up. Being that A-Rod puts pressure on himself is a big negative and a 2 spot is perfect.
Xavier Nady- He is very underrated. He hits over .300 in almost every hitting situation especially with RISP. His solid contact is very important for a clean up man and he has proved to be one of the few players to remain clutch throughout the season. A 4 spot for him at both lineups makes sense because of his great situational hitting numbers and has 15 Homeruns with 61 RBI. He also has only hit into 1 double play all year.
Johnny Damon- He has been on a tear batting average wise and especially with RISP at .378 and over .400 with RISP w/less than 2 outs. He is hitting right handers at over .320 and left handers at barely over .270 so he is only necessary for the RHP lineup; being that Nady and Sexson would fill his spot because they hit lefties better.
Jason Giambi- Giambi's power has been terrific but his batting average is the worst for any starter on this team. With runners in scoring position he is batting a dreadful .208 with only 2 Homeruns. He has 14 homeruns with no runners on base, but he is obviously too slow to bat at the top of the order, so putting him near the bottom of the lineup is the only logical possibility to still get a good number of at-bats.
Bobby Abreu- He might not get signed next year but his numbers arent that bad. With RISP and 2 outs he is hitting .442 and with RISP and less than 2 outs he is hitting .298 so he has proven to be somewhat clutch in the pressure situation. He is best at the middle of the lineup so that he can make the lineup have a variety of lefties and righties. His numbers with RISP also show that he would be best in a spot with runners usually on base.
Robinson Cano- Believe it or not, Robby Cano hits .311 against lefties and .242 against right handed pitchers. Him and Abreu are the only two left handed bats i'd put against a left handed pitcher and Abreu hits bad with no men on base. Furthermore, Robby Cano can get the nod at a 2 spot against a LHP to mix up the variety of left and right handed batters and has some speed to fit the 2 spot. He is at the bottom of the RHP lineup becaus his average against right handed pitching is very low at .242.
Melky Cabrera- He has really struggled offensively in every category. He hits a horrible .215 with RISP and has no power. Putting him at the very bottom of both lineups is the only solution for him not to hurt the team offensively and kill rallies. He has a great glove and a rocket arm and those are the only reasons he is not on the bench.
Richie Sexson- Sexson is obviously not going to bat against right handers being that he is hitting an embarrissing .179 against them. Against LHP however, he is the exact opposite hitting .347 and 5 Homeruns in 72 at-bats. He is also 6'8 so any high or bad throw by the infield will be easily caught by a guy of his height, length, and wingspan; making him play 1B. He has solid contact and power against LHP so putting him in the middle of the lineup is perfect for him.
Justin Christian- I had a choice at DH for the LHP lineup for either Damon, Betmit or Christian. Damon is hitting a little over .270 against LHP and Betmit is hitting .216 against LHP. Christian is hitting .353 against LHP with 5 RBI in only 17 at-bats. He was the best DH solution against a left handed pitcher and would get more playing time and experience.

Well this took sometime to dig up the numbers but you get the idea that some players dont fit at there orginal spots right now in Joe Girardi's lineup. If we hit decent with RISP, our team would probably be in 1st place in their division. So many losing games are due to missed oppurtunities to drive runs in and always leaving men on base which makes me sick to my stomach, due to all of the talent and ability this team has over most teams. I think pitching wise, Girardi knows what he is doing and has more talent in the Yankee's farm system if any pitcher starts to get hit. I think my lineup would be better suited this point in the season and maybe we could put some more runs on the board and stop letting the runners strand on base. Go Yankees!
 
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