clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Yankees lineup vs. Dodgers, doubleheader game one

By Andrew Mearns
"Tell me something, Shawn... am I really the worst hitter in this lineup?"
"Tell me something, Shawn... am I really the worst hitter in this lineup?"
Victor Decolongon

There is no difference between the lineup for the first game of today's doubleheader and the one Joe Girardi was going to run out last night:

It should be noted that Hiroki Kuroda is pitching the afternoon game rather than Phil Hughes, who was supposed to start last night. Hughes will start the second game. Joe Girardi said this was because older players tend to prefer starting earlier games. Alrighty then.

That is... quite the lineup. I expect that we'll probably see Zoilo Almonte's big-league debut in Game 2 to give one of the aged outfielders a rest, but that's just a guess (Bryan Hoch agrees, so look for that in the nightcap). It's weird to see Vernon Wells hitting fourth. That being said, it doesn't really seem clear who else would go there since there's not much power in the lineup right now. (Aside: I will also say that though I like him, Thomas Neal hitting fourth is not much better than Steve Pearce hitting cleanup last year. Pass.)

In yesterday's lineup post, PB member Terrekain proposed this possible lineup with a possibly insane/possibly brilliant spin:

1) Ichiro Suzuki [L] (LF)
2) Jayson Nix [R] (SS)
3) Brett Gardner [L] (CF)
4) Robinson Cano [L] (2B)
5) Vernon Wells [R] (RF)
6) Thomas Neal [R] (DH)
7) Lyle Overbay [L] (1B)
8) Chris Stewart [R] (C)
9) David Adams [R] (3B)

Gardner batting third? What the what? Here's his reasoning:

Gardner is hitting for a lot more power, and I don’t mean simply homeruns. He’s second on the team in extra-base hits, four behind Cano. It’s one of the reasons he isn’t stealing as much... you can’t steal as many bases when you hit doubles, triples and home runs. Ichiro and Nix have plenty of speed in front of him so they should be able to make use of his extra-base hits and score.

Even if Gardner only singles and walks, Ichiro and Nix are fast enough that they won’t clog the bases in front of him. Gardner’s development of power this season is wasted in the lead-off position…especially now that the Yankees are hurting for power with the loss of Tex and Youk and A-Rod and all the rest.

He’s one of the Yankees’ best hitters right now; use him that way.

The Yankees' offense right now is struggling so much that it might just be crazy enough to work, especially since Ichiro and Gardner have been hitting well the past week or so. Gardner would still be on base for Cano in this situation anyway. With DH Travis Hafner occasionally needing days off, why not give it a shot? It might inspire more confidence than Vernon Wells hitting cleanup anyway.

Here's the Dodgers' lineup, which is a little different than the one they posted last night:

There's not much else news to report this morning, but MLB.com Video recently uploaded some classic clips related to Yankees/Dodgers. Check 'em out:

Don't forget that broadcaster Vin Scullywill be taking over the Dodgers' Twitter account for Game 2 tonight. That's definitely worth checking out.

More From Pinstripe Alley