Watching such future Hall of Famers as Ron Mahay and C.J. Wilson cut through the top of the lineup like a hot knife through butter, perhaps it's time to recalibrate the Sox lineup a little bit. Scott Podsednik, Tadahito Iguchi and Jim Thome have done more harm than good, but that's mainly because 90 percent of the human population is right-handed.
Here's what the top of the order looks like:
| vs. Righties |
vs. Lefties |
Podsednik
Iguchi
Thome
|
.293 | .376 | .423
.333 | .386 | .458
.326 | .436 | .805
|
Podsednik
Iguchi
Thome
|
.229 | .292 | .312
.211 | .271 | .324
.248 | .368 | .372
|
Iguchi's the one who screws it up, because by being righty, he's supposed to hit lefties well naturally. The baffling thing is that he hit lefties better last year (.274/.353/.459), and it's not like he made vast changes with his swing. Maybe scouts figured out a weakness after his first big-league season, or maybe it's just some sort of mental block.
Whatever the case may be, opposing teams have been presented a hole in the White Sox lineups, and smart managers like Joe Torre, Jim Leyland and Buck Showalter have taken advantage of it. Since the All-Star break, the 1-2-3 spots have been 8-for-36 against southpaws. Eliminate Scott Podsednik from the equation (he's 4-for-9, even with an 0-for-4 against Nate Robertson), and Sox hitters are 4-for-27 against lefties.
Then when you throw in Paul Konerko, who has been 2-for-21 in the White Sox's six post-break losses, nearly half the Sox lineup is caving in on itself when lefties take the mound.
So what can be done to remedy this situation? Let's list the possibilities from most possible to least:
Solution No. 1: Flip Konerko and Thome in the batting order.
| Pros: |
- Assuming Konerko starts hitting, a situational lefty can't last an entire inning with Pods leading off.
- No increase in double play possibilites, as Thome and Konerko are both slow.
- Preserves rest of lineup.
|
| Cons: |
- Iguchi and Pods are still two holes in a row.
- There's something comforting about having Thome disrupt a pitcher's first inning every ballgame. Konerko doesn't provide the same scare.
|
Solution No. 2: Dump Iguchi to seventh, push the rest of the lineup up one spot with Konerko hitting second.
| Pros: |
- The best hitters are up the soonest.
- Good righty-lefty balance:
Pods-PK-Thome-Dye-A.J.-Crede-Gooch-Uribe-Anderson
- Speed is dispersed the same.
- Thome is still up in the first inning.
|
| Cons: |
- Paulie isn't a traditional "No. 2" hitter -- works on paper, but new role could make him uncomfortable.
- Alters approach, as far as run manufacturing goes (this is a con assuming Iguchi remembers how to bunt).
|
Solution No. 3: Be more aggressive in deploying Pablo Ozuna and Alex Cintron.
| Pros: |
- It doesn't disrupt batting order.
- Speed/bunting game is still there.
- Good lefty-righty balance.
- On-base percentages favor this highly.
|
| Cons: |
- Pisses off Iguchi, who believes he's an everyday player -- and he has a right to believe that.
- It's a downgrade defensively.
- Increases chances of Ozzie overmanaging later in the game, takes away bench flexibility.
- Ozuna's crashing down to Earth.
|
UPDATE: Solution No. 4: Switch Dye and Thome, bump Crede ahead of A.J.
(courtesy thndrstrck at South Side Sox).
| Pros: |
- Lefties would not last an entire inning in any way.
- Highly effective at the start of the game.
- Prevents A.J. from killing rallies.
|
| Cons: |
- That's a big clump of slow guys.
- If a righty comes in, does Thome see as many pitches?
- Needs Ozuna for optimal usage.
|
The second option actually excites me a great deal, and I think it makes a lot of sense in the American League. In the National League, the 1-2 hitters don't only start the game, but they often have to make up ground with an automatic out in front of them. But in the AL, after the first pitches are thrown, "leadoff man" never really re-enters the equation. Good hitters are good hitters, and the Sox would be pushing theirs towards the top of the lineup.
However, with respect to the people who actually have to play the game, Ozzie has to use them in manners in which they feel comfortable. Flipping the 3-4 spots doesn't make much difference because 1) both Thome and Konerko have hit there before, and 2) Jermaine Dye is bringing up the rear either way. That's probably the best place to start. If Konerko rebounds from this slump, then you can see what happens to the offense before making any more drastic changes.
Feel free to drop any other ideas you have. I feel like I'm missing an option, but I can't quite think of what it might be.