At what point do we start talking about moving Jeter back to the #2 spot?  And, for the record, i was crying for YEARS that he should be leading off.

What’s wrong with the current lineup?  Just curious.

At what point do we start talking about moving Jeter back to the #2 spot?  And, for the record, i was crying for YEARS that he should be leading off.

Why move him?  Jeter has a higher OBP and lower SLG than Damon, and indeed, he has the highest OBP on the team—that sounds like an ideal lead-off man.

but how important is today’s game?

But aren’t he and damon going in different directions?  Or is that just my imagination?

Damon’s had a tough July, but he has an OPS+ of 115 for the last 14 days,it really was a rough beginning to July that has dragged his monthly totals down.  Not sure which direction each is going, or how flipping the two of them would be justified.

Ok, then let’s assume their numbers are their actual levels of talent.  Looks like Jeter is the “better” hitter overall.  Sure, he gets on more than Damon, but Jeter’s on base is tied in more to average, which is going to waste in the 1st inning, and any inning where the bottom of the order fails to get on.  Well, not “goes to waste” but “isn’t maximized.

With those sets of numbers, who would you want leading off?  Of course, i can see the argument of “if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it”

I like Jeter where he is.  What monkeypants said, plus he’s probably the best baserunner on the team.  Jeter’s a “roley” kind of guy, and so it’s possible that it isn’t a coincidence that his BB/PA is the second highest in his career (first is his outrageous 1999)...his approach may be “I’m leadoff…I gotta get on”.  In any event, it isn’t like the top of the order is broken: the Yanks remain at the tops of the league in offense, no?  Plus, Damon is much less prone to GIDP than Jete.

I don’t see what difference it makes to flip two players (esp. adjacent ones) in a lineup - unless one is OPSing 1.200 and the other 0.600, it shouldn’t measurably matter.  And I would guess the relative GIDP skills of the two players in question will remain fairly steady.

With those sets of numbers, who would you want leading off?

Jeter.

...to boot, Jeter is also striking out at the lowest rate of his career.

What’s wrong with the current lineup?

Nothing.

It might be worth mentioning that JD has 8 stolen bases this year.  I believe Jeter has 18.  I’m not sure if that has to do with batting #2, but he may have lost a step or two.

If anything, having Jeter getting on base at a 40% clip means Damon has a bigger hole to his pull side 40% of the time he bats.  That seems like it’d be pretty beneficial.

Related to a discussion in the previous post re:2010 roster…I think a lot of people are over-estimating the Yankees willingness to spend money this offseason and (again) the going rate for talent.  Recall Bobby Abreu and how off we were on his contract.  I mean, people kept talking about how Billy Beane would just sit on Holliday and take the draft picks but- correct me if I’m wrong- without offering arbitration teams get no picks and I don’t think Beane was going to offer Holiday arb.  I can see Figgings going for $5-6M/yr and Harden going for $7-10M/yr.

Plus, Damon is much less prone to GIDP than Jete.

That’s my biggest reason.  I also like the runner-on-for-LHB-to-pull argument.

[15]  But you didn’t answer my question: how often does a player coming off an all-star year sign a below-market contract to be a utility player?

It would be pretty satisfying to knock Garza around.

Well, I think that settles that.

Yeah, Jeter is fine right where is in the lineup.

Must score Jeter.

That was very Jeterian…

Could have been worse.

Sweet…

Teix finds a hole.

Ha ! Bitches ! Shift that.

What is the market?  I am saying that, with the exception of Halladay if he gets extended, it will be lower than people expect again.  And All-Star means zero- by the end of the year he will probably be near his 98 OPS+ career average.  I’m not sure we even want him because I don’t know how his defense rates but, if it’s good, I think he’d be a player that we can easily get 500 AB’s at various positions.  Maybe an OF of: Swish, Melky, Gardner, and AJax, and IF of Teix, Cano, Jeter, ARod, Pena and Figgy for IF/OF, Montero at DH/C/RF?, and Posada/Cervelli at C.  With rotation of: CC, Burnett, Joba, Hughes, and Harden.

i heard a rumor about Sanchez to SF.

aha, not a rumor. SF vs. the Phils for the NL? That would be unexpected.

That was suboptimal.

Go Sweeney…

Penny in trouble in the first?

RE: Jeter at leadoff or other

The great Bill James has noted that position in the batting order has nothing to do with productivity…

SF vs. the Phils for the NL?

Right now the odds favor Dodgers vs. Phils.  Not sure Sanchez pushes SF ahead of Colorado.

Penny in trouble in the first?

Big trouble… A’s up 2-0 with 1st and 3rd and 1 out…

Leadoff homer, then loads the bases no outs. Sweeney grounded into FC for another run.

9 pitches!

Gamecast has Joba hitting 95 once against Upton, mostly 90-91 so far, but still nice to see that heat before the 4th.

Easy 1-2-3 inning for Joba…

Bags now juiced in Boston for the A’s in the top of the first…

I get NESN but can’t bring myself to change to it even to check the situation.  I fear I may end up buying Giant Glass or something.

Strikeouts are boring! Besides that, they’re fascist. Throw some groundballs, they’re more democratic.

[40] LOL!

11 strikes, 12 balls. Yeah, trouble.

Wall ball… 3-run double… A’s 5-0

In play, run(s)

BTW, wasn’t last night’s Papelbon meltdown a thing of beauty?

[46] Better than Penny´s first. If you can take it, go look at the pic from boston dirt dogs.

The semi-oblgatory waste pitch.

Damon battles the roof to catch a routine flyball.

Hey, a strikeout!  More please.

Joba locking down. Nice.

Remember when everyone was saying Philadelphia was crazy for letting Burrell go to get Ibanez?

WooHoo! 21 pitches through 2, hitting 93-94 MPH fairly regularly.

Brazil, thanks for the dirt dogs reference… great pic of Pap…

Nice start by Swish…

Your welcome, RI.

Swish continues to be en fuego:

.316 /.458 /.737/1.195 (last 7 days)

I thought Ibanez was an awful sigining.  Perhaps we all underestimate the superiority of the AL both at the plate and pitching.  When a league wins 56-60% of the head-to-head matchups it implies superiority.  Look at CC on Milwaukee.

That was very Jeterian…

Sorry, that was horrible. You are welcomed. My english is bad, but not that bad.

That bunt may have bought Jeter a 1B or 2B in a future AB against the Rays….

Small ball that works? That’s… that’s not really normal.

Lowell 3-run dinger… A’s 5 Sox 3

Ibanez’s success sets back the cause of reasoned baseball analysis 10 years.

Well, that’s teh suck.

Small ball that works?

I’m not going to complain about opportunistic bunting for a hit when the 3B is playing deep (which, as PagsRags points out, might have future benefits when Jeter swings away).  I just don’t want to see clear cut sacrifice attempts.

Apparently, Pirates got Tim Alderson for Freddy Sanchez.

Has to be a major coup for the Pirates.

I love the shots of the Boss in the lux box eating hot dogs… slurping ice scream… he almost looks engaged…

Ohhhhhhh what a money pitch by Joba!!!

nasty

For those of us watching on ESPN, do we really need bball analysis - such as it is - from Steve Phillips… where’s that remote…

[60] Your English is fine, but in case you don’t mind me pointing it out, it’s “You are welcome”, though that’s oddly stiff - “You’re welcome” is (idiomatically) required in almost all contexts.

And the stuff about Dice-K at that RS site is amazing.  He was great for them last year and now his name is dirt?

Whoa!

Hops!

That Teixeira grab makes up for last night’s flub…

Wow! I’ve seen enough this year to say Marke Teixeira is NOT an average defensive 1B, as some statistics would indicate.

Nailed.

Jorge!

[72] Thanks. I never mind being corrected. It only helps in avoiding making the same mistakes.

And the stuff about Daisuke Matsuzaka at that RS site is amazing.  He was great for them last year and now his name is dirt?

Such is the fickleness of RS fans… they all turned on Manny…

Great throw by Jorge!!!

More runs, please.

Wow! I’ve seen enough this year to say Marke Teixeira is NOT an average defensive 1B, as some statistics would indicate.

Snapper, don’t you know that you cannot predict baseball? 

The Trop certainly is duckfart prone, it appears.

Six hits already for the Yankees.  An increase in the run total column would be nice.

Again with the popups with RISP.  ugh.

I’ll take it…

Again with the popups with RISP.  ugh.

Yeah… on the first pitch, no less…

Joba is cruisin’ tonight…

Efficient pitching rocks.

Steve Philips assumes that was headhunting (and likes it!?)

That’s nice! A little chin music sets up a weak pop-up and a frustrated Longoria.

Penny in trouble again in the Fens…

Pitch count now at 65+

A’s have runners on 1st and 2nd with one out…

figure they retaliate vs the Rod?

Why is the assumption that they retaliate specifically with Jeter ?

[94] ESPN? Because they want to gratuitously diss Alex?

What?! No warning?  WTF?

Gotta make the Rays pay for this strategy…

Remember when the Rod, the Wang, and the Big Unit were all on the same team.  Good times.

Suttcliffe: Only grown adults should try to hit other adults with a baseball at very high speeds.

Question - do I want a live look in at the KC/Bal game?

Gameday is hilarious sometimes.