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The Ultimate Lineup Builder
A few general concepts:
After some really in depth research, we came up with what we feel are the best things to look for in a 1 spot hitter.
A few things to remember:
Speed, speedy leadoff hitters steal bases, their caught stealing ratio should be no more than 1/4 of their attempts to steal bases, if a leadoff hitter attempts 120 steals in a season, he needs to be successful on 90 of those attempts.
OB %, leadoff hitters need a good ob%, .380 or higher is ideal for the 1 hitter, but at the same time a high strikeout per AB ratio is not good.
The ability to hit doubles is another attribute that good for a leadoff hitter, its puts him in scoring position quicker, combine hitting a double with speed and the ability to be an aggressive runner, and you manufacture many runs through out the season.
The R/L +/- ratio should always be somewhere between a -4 and a +4 for any leadoff hitter.
The 2 Hitter,
The 2 hitter probably should always have a high CN , this allows him to move the leadoff hitter into scoring position, a high CN will also likely result in more double plays being turned by your opposition, But which is the greater benefit?
Some have said its good to use a lefty at the 2 slot, they get a couple more steps steps out of the box on a ground ball, which might only result in a fielders choice instead of a double play.
Speed is an added bonus in the 2 slot, if you can get it, take it. The 2 hitter is where you want to pay attention to RC ( runs created) the 2 hitter needs to be able to create scoring opportunities for the leadoff hitter, a high GDP total is NOT something you want in the 2 slot.
Some put their best OPS guy in the 2 slot, and it has been successful for them. Its probably a situation where if it works, do it.
The 3 Hitter,
Generally this slot is used to put your best overall hitter in, the 3 hitter should be the player with the best overall AVG and if possible the best SLG%, in the 3 hole you need production, and the best hitter in both AVG and SLG% is usually the best production hitter on the team. Some managers will put their best OPS hitter at 3, in some cases it might be the best strategy, but usually only if your 9 hitter has a good OB%.
- The top of your order always gets more at-bats than the bottom of your order, so you always want hitters who create runs up there.
- Your #9 hitter always hits behind/ahead of your #1 hitter, so you want him to have a decent chance to get on base, as your #1 hitter is usually good.
- Speed matters from the perspective of extra-base hits. If your leadoff guy runs like a duck in a straight-jacket and your #2 guy runs like a jackrabbit on speed, you may want to flip them, because there will be enough times where there's a visible bottleneck on the basepaths.
- Towards the bottom of the order, move guys up who can generate runs (XBH) over singles.
After some really in depth research, we came up with what we feel are the best things to look for in a 1 spot hitter.
A few things to remember:
- The leadoff hitter gets more plate appearances than any other player. As a result, he should be a good hitter, better than your team average, because he'll hit more than anyone else.
- He is always up at least once with no runners on and no one out. If the typical leadoff batter has four plate appearances per game, 25% of his times to the plate will be with none on and none out. As a result, his ability to move runners by getting extra-base hits -- especially home runs -- is reduced in 25% of his at-bats.
- He is generally followed by the best sluggers on the team. Because of this, the leadoff guy must get on base, and if he can get in scoring position right away, even better. A leadoff hitter who slaps doubles or can steal bases will also reduce the chance the sluggers ground into double plays.
- The guys who bat before him are generally the worst hitters on the team. This is magnified in non-DH leagues, but either way, the 7th through 9th guys usually hit below your team average. This generally means that the leadoff hitter is more often coming up at the top of the inning or when there are less runners on base ahead of him (as with #2, reducing the value of moving runners around the bases).
Speed, speedy leadoff hitters steal bases, their caught stealing ratio should be no more than 1/4 of their attempts to steal bases, if a leadoff hitter attempts 120 steals in a season, he needs to be successful on 90 of those attempts.
OB %, leadoff hitters need a good ob%, .380 or higher is ideal for the 1 hitter, but at the same time a high strikeout per AB ratio is not good.
The ability to hit doubles is another attribute that good for a leadoff hitter, its puts him in scoring position quicker, combine hitting a double with speed and the ability to be an aggressive runner, and you manufacture many runs through out the season.
The R/L +/- ratio should always be somewhere between a -4 and a +4 for any leadoff hitter.
The 2 Hitter,
The 2 hitter probably should always have a high CN , this allows him to move the leadoff hitter into scoring position, a high CN will also likely result in more double plays being turned by your opposition, But which is the greater benefit?
Some have said its good to use a lefty at the 2 slot, they get a couple more steps steps out of the box on a ground ball, which might only result in a fielders choice instead of a double play.
Speed is an added bonus in the 2 slot, if you can get it, take it. The 2 hitter is where you want to pay attention to RC ( runs created) the 2 hitter needs to be able to create scoring opportunities for the leadoff hitter, a high GDP total is NOT something you want in the 2 slot.
Some put their best OPS guy in the 2 slot, and it has been successful for them. Its probably a situation where if it works, do it.
The 3 Hitter,
Generally this slot is used to put your best overall hitter in, the 3 hitter should be the player with the best overall AVG and if possible the best SLG%, in the 3 hole you need production, and the best hitter in both AVG and SLG% is usually the best production hitter on the team. Some managers will put their best OPS hitter at 3, in some cases it might be the best strategy, but usually only if your 9 hitter has a good OB%.
DMan08 |
Latest page update: made by DMan08
, Apr 26 2008, 2:55 PM EDT
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| Started By | Thread Subject | Replies | Last Post | ||
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| DMan08 | The Cleanup hitter | 4 | May 1 2008, 12:11 PM EDT by barroomhero | ||
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Thread started: Apr 18 2008, 7:21 AM EDT
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The best HR hitter on the team?
High SLG% ? |
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| DMan08 | The 5 hitter | 2 | Apr 18 2008, 11:57 PM EDT by under2minutes | ||
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Thread started: Apr 18 2008, 7:22 AM EDT
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The second best HR hitter on the team?
I like to define the 5 hitter as the "Slugger" |
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| DMan08 | The 3 hitter | 3 | Apr 18 2008, 11:51 PM EDT by under2minutes | ||
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Thread started: Apr 18 2008, 7:20 AM EDT
Watch
this hitter should be the one with the best batting average on the team no?
High OB% as well ? |
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