Opening day is fast approaching, as the teams buses have left their spring training facilities and are heading to their home parks to get ready for the season opener. As a player, you have high hopes for what you can achieve both as a team and as an individual. This is the time of year where players sit back and try to imagine where there careers are headed, and what they can do to establish themselves as one of the games best. No matter your age or standing in the league, your main focus right now is to either stay healthy or if you're already injured, get healthy.
The Red Sox and Philadelphia Phillies debate as to whom is the best team in baseball took a turn in the Red Sox favor as this week we have learned that Chase Utley's knee is not looking very promising. At this point the report is that he and the team are doing everything they can in order to avoid surgery. If his injury does not start to look better and the discomfort does not go away, the Phils may be without their All-Star second basemen for quite a while. This would put trmendous pressure on Ryan Howard to carry the load that will be left by some combination of Wilson Valdez and newly acquired Luis Castillo. Neither guy can really offer much from an offensive standpoint, especially Castillo who was let go by the Mets while they still owe him $9MM for the 2011 season. I am very interested in seeing what lineup they will go with, but I will provide my own opinion on what I would do:
1. SS Rollins - S
2. LF Ibanez - L
3. 3B Polanco - R
4. 1B Howard - L
5. CF Victorino - S
6. RF Francisco - R
7. C Ruiz -R
8. 2B (Valdez/Castillo) - S
9. Pitcher
This lineup gives the top 3 guys with the higher OBP a chance to get on base in front of Howard. It also avoids the late-inning matchup problems that they had with lefties Utley, Howard, Ibanez all bunched up. At this point Jimmy Rollins hasn't shown power for a couple of years, so use what speed he has left in his legs and hope for a bounce back season. If you think it should look different, comment and let me know what you think, and why!
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