I think the pitching staff looks solid with addition of Suarez and the bullpen should be good again. Not sure where this leaves Tolle and Early who both look capable major leaguers.

My disappointment is a power bat with no Devers and Bregman this is big hole. Nothing brings fans to park more than the big bomb. Anthony will get his share but he needs help. Who’s gonna hit 30-40 bombs? No one. Small ball is ok but we need the threat of a grande or big bomb to keep the opposition on their toes. Contrearas isn’t the answer in my opinion. No intimidation here.

27 comments

  1. I don’t think Campbell will start at 2B. He was really bad last year defensively.

  2. Yeah I don’t think that’s a good enough lineup to make a serious playoff push. The pitching will keep them competitive and it won’t be a wasted season BUT not getting a legit power bat was such a failure

  3. I think Campbell starts in the minors unless he has a scorching spring. Even then I think the Campbell to 2b experiment is mostly over. It’s not his fault the Red Sox essentially have him blocked as an OF but that’s on poor management.

  4. This lineup would benefit from a right handed power bat. And we watched them all go elsewhere. Should’ve signed Alonso. Story in the 3 spot is a crime. No idea how anybody can look at this lineup and think they can win a World Series. Literally putting all of the pressure on a 22 year old.

  5. maybe i’m in the minority here but i don’t hate this line up. what we may lack in power we can make up for in versatility and speed. my hope is that Campbell progresses at 2nd into a legit infielder defensively.

  6. I understand that having a power hitter definitely makes things easier, however, there are teams that have won the World Series that didn’t have anyone hit more than 30 home runs. 2015 royals, I think the giants during their even year run too. Here’s to hoping we can repeat that magic.

  7. It obviously will be very different against LHP and RHP. This is what I’d expect:

    Lineup | vs. RHP | vs. LHP
    —|—|—-
    1 | Duran | Anthony
    2 | Anthony | Romy
    3 | Yoshida | Contreras
    4 | Contreras | Story
    5 | Abreu | Abreu
    6 | Story | Narvaez
    7 | Narvaez | Duran
    8 | Mayer | Mayer
    9 | Rafaela | Rafaela

    That lineup against RHP should be great. They could definitely use another platoon bat against LHP though, it falls off pretty hard after the top 3.

  8. Anthony is probably a long term better outfielder than Duran and should be playing daily. It would be a mistake to consistently DH him

  9. Bregman has only hit 30+ HRs twice in his career. In the last few years (2022-25) he’s averaged closer to 25.

    So, who can hit 25 on this roster? Anthony, Abreu and Story.

    Who can hit 20? Rafaela, Duran, Contreras and a mostly healthy Casas.

    That’s not terrible. It isn’t a lineup that screams the long ball but it’s a lineup that should produce runs. Anything positive from Mayer and KC, we’re looking great.

    Pitching should really keep us in games and I think this lineup allows us to really compete.

    Pulling hard for Rafaela, Mayer, Abreu and KC to take that next step. It CAN happen!!

  10. Everyone likes to watch this game in different ways, though we all come together when it is winning.

    Perhaps it’s because I’m from the UK and I’ve spent my life as a Spurs fan so I don’t expect much. I stay interested as long as they keep giving the young core a good chance to grow and succeed – you could definitely argue the best way for them to do that was to keep Bregman or ensure they had sufficient coverage from a power RHH so there is less pressure on them all.

    It’s going to be an interesting season, almost a complete DNA change in terms of the hyper-focus on pitching that I can’t remember too much of in my 30 years of watching them.

  14. 1. Contreras is the best defensive 1st basemen this team has had since maybe Mitch Moreland in 2018. After seeing Dalbec, Franchy, and Casas over there, to complain about him is stupid. Pete Alonso and Schwarber are DHs. Eugenio Suarez is a DH as Reds have Ke’Bryan Hays at 3rd. None of these were good fits. Contreras is actually a 1st basemen.
    2. Campbell starts the year at AAA unless it’s a really good spring with tolereable defense at 2nd.
    3. Roman Anthony is 21 years old. He will be 22 in May. He needs to develop as an outfielder. Under no circumstances should he be a DH.
    4. Wilyer Abreu is 25-30 HR. Story is 25. Anthony is 25-30. Contreras is 20-25. Mayer and Rafaela are 15-20. Duran if he is still here is 15?. While there is no guy that will for sure give 30, it is a capable lineup.
    5. Tolle speed runned the minors. We don’t know where he is with secondary stuff. Early is more finished and should compete for the 5th starter. We always say we have a lot of starting pitching but always seem to be doing bullpens and spot starters by late May.
    6. IKF is an insurance policy on Mayer and Story who break. I also think it’s a step 1 to a step 2. We just don’t know what step 2 is.
    7. Not bending on the Bregman NTC is the only thing to get on the front office about. There is a reason why they didn’t go after these other targets. It was not a good free agency class.

  15. The Campbell being the front runner at 2B thing feels more like this sub/fans trying to find a silver lining to not adding a bat than actual reporting. The Red Sox had chances to work him at 2B in AAA and the fall league and really didn’t. I get the argument that they wanted to work on his swing first but I think I’d wait until the Red Sox commit to playing Campbell at 2B again before he is penciled in as the starter

  16. The lineup is fine. It not going to be a bottom 10 offense in baseball… The biggest issue is that with our pitching staff we are one plus bat away from going to playoff team to World Series contenders.

  18. This team is a fucking joke with that trash lineup. That is like the 2nd game of a doubleheader lineup but we get to watch it day in and day out. Jesus Christ

  24. Romy Gonzalez at 2B. He’s earned it. He’s a better bat than Campbell and Mayer. Why shouldn’t he start most games there?

  25. No Campbell please. He should have to prove his can dominate in Worcester for like a month straight before getting another chance. Having to demote him again could be a disaster. Let him get up to speed on easy mode first.

    I also think the top of your lineup needs a different order but something like that can work.

  26. You ever go to a nice restaurant and the food is fine? Nothing is bad, there’s even a couple things that are good, but there isn’t anything that’s awesome and so the whole experience is underwhelming?

    That’s this lineup. It’s not awful, I just expect more.

Leave a Reply