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Pitchers batting 8th ALL SEASON...?
Pitcher will bat eighth again
JUPITER, FLA. • Manager Tony La Russa will defy convention again this season — and this spring, too — by batting the pitcher eighth, he said Tuesday.
But he may be gaining converts.
Milwaukee manager Ned Yost has reportedly considered batting his pitcher eighth and moving catcher Jason Kendall into the ninth spot to get his top-order hitters more RBI chances. It’s a similar theory that La Russa uses to guide his lineup — a chance to have Albert Pujols be a de facto cleanup hitting when the roster turns over. "We’re going to have the second leadoff (hitter) with the No. 9 hitter when we start putting the pitcher in the lineup (in mid-March)," La Russa said. Asked if that held for the regular season, he said: "Yeah, I plan to."
The Cardinals saw enough of an offensive jump after the switch last season to encourage La Russa to stick with the newfangled lineup. In the 106 games before the switch, the Cardinals averaged 4.34 runs a game. After: 4.64 runs per game, despite key injuries. Pitchers’ on-base percentage jumped from .217 in the nine spot to .248 in the eighth spot.
By Derrick Goold
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
02/27/2008ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
 February 23, 2008 -- Cardinals manager Tony La Russa (right) hits ground balls to infielders. (Chris Lee/P-D) |
JUPITER, FLA. • Manager Tony La Russa will defy convention again this season — and this spring, too — by batting the pitcher eighth, he said Tuesday.
But he may be gaining converts.
Milwaukee manager Ned Yost has reportedly considered batting his pitcher eighth and moving catcher Jason Kendall into the ninth spot to get his top-order hitters more RBI chances. It’s a similar theory that La Russa uses to guide his lineup — a chance to have Albert Pujols be a de facto cleanup hitting when the roster turns over. "We’re going to have the second leadoff (hitter) with the No. 9 hitter when we start putting the pitcher in the lineup (in mid-March)," La Russa said. Asked if that held for the regular season, he said: "Yeah, I plan to."
The Cardinals saw enough of an offensive jump after the switch last season to encourage La Russa to stick with the newfangled lineup. In the 106 games before the switch, the Cardinals averaged 4.34 runs a game. After: 4.64 runs per game, despite key injuries. Pitchers’ on-base percentage jumped from .217 in the nine spot to .248 in the eighth spot.
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