After taking a moment to let us catch our breath from all the action, we figured we take a look at the projected Red Sox batting order for the upcoming 2011 season:
1. Jacoby Ellsbury
2. Dustin Pedroia
3. Carl Crawford
4. Adrian Gonzalez
5. Kevin Youkilis
6. David Ortiz
7. J.D. Drew
8. Jarrod Saltalamacchia
9. Marco Scutaro
Against lefties expect Mike Cameron to play right field for J.D. Drew. Drew’s batting average against left handed pitching has steadily decreased over the last three seasons settling in at .208 in 2010. For his career, Cameron tends to have a higher batting average against left handed pitching.
Carl Crawford should settle in nicely in the 3 hole. Crawford has spent the bulk of the last three seasons batting second, but has spent some time batting third. When batting third, Crawford had a higher batting average in 2010 and on average over the last three seasons.
The biggest winner of this offseason would have to be Kevin Youkilis. Youk’s overall numbers will benefit from having four batters in front of him with the ability to get on base and move into scoring position.
Jed Lowrie could also play a prominent role should the Red Sox decide to trade Marco Scutaro. If that is the case, the lineup could look like this:
1. Dustin Pedroia
2. Carl Crawford
3. Kevin Youkilis
4. Adrian Gonzalez
5. David Ortiz
6. Jed Lowrie
7. J.D. Drew
8. Jarrod Saltalamacchia
9. Jacoby Ellsbury
Jed Lowrie had a nice showing the second half of the season with 9 HR’s. 24 RBI’s, .287 avg and 31 runs scores in only 171 AB’s. The big question is whether or not Lowrie can remain healthy for an entire season. The Sox could use Scutaro and his relatively cheap ($5 Mil) contract as trade bait for additional middle relief help.
Let us know what you think.
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