*I could be convinced of Jones as 3 and Markakis as 2. Just not Jones at 5 or some such.
*Mora needs to go to at least 7.
*Wieters should be 9th based on his lack of hitting, but Izzy actually getting on base ofr the 1-2-3 of Roberts, *Markakis and Jones is too good to give up
*Reimold needs to go to 6 with Mora at 7. Just look at the difference in OPS+

………………………………………………….BA………….OBP…………SLG………….OPS…………OPS+
1….2B…..Brian Roberts#…………………..0.283……….0.352……….0.447……….0.800……….106
2….RF…..Nick Markakis*…………………..0.293……….0.358……….0.474……….0.833……….114
3….CF…..Adam Jones………………………0.345……….0.399……….0.603……….1.002……….156
4….DH…..Luke Scott* ……………………….0.323……….0.399……….0.661……….1.060……….169
5….1B…..Aubrey Huff*……………………….0.268……….0.333……….0.463……….0.797……….105
6….LF…..Nolan Reimold……………………0.279……….0.329……….0.529……….0.858……….118
7….3B…..Melvin Mora…………………………0.269……….0.333……….0.343……….0.677……….77
8….C…..Matt Wieters#………………………..0.143……….0.182……….0.286……….0.468……….19
9….SS…..Cesar Izturis#………………………0.260……….0.293……….0.327……….0.620……….61
 
*=LH, #=SWITCH HITTER
http://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/BAL/2009.shtml

The Orioles need something to spark their slumping offense. A shakeup in the lineup is long overdue. I especially agree with your comment on Wieters. Prior to his debut last Friday, I figured that he would bat 8th behind Reimold, not 7th. Nolan has earned his spot in the lineup. Perhaps Trembley got caught up in the hype much like the rest of us and figured that Wieters should bat higher in the lineup.

for Jones batting 2nd and Markakis batting 3rd is that Jones sees more fastballs hitting in front of Markakis. I understand the logic, and perhaps at the beginning of the year it was true, and I love Nicky, but I agree with JP they should be switched as well.

Reasoning: Nick is in the midst of one of the worst slumps of his career. He’s shown a few signs of life but is still not the Nick that we all know and love. Adam Jones is one of the few players who’s monster performance in April hasn’t been followed by a massive drop off in May. In April his OPS was 1.062 in April and .960 in May, and his power numbers went up. Switching Nick and Adam right now makes sense for the reasons JP suggests, but also because now NICK will be the one seeing better pitches so pitchers won’t have to face Adam. Plus, generally Nick takes a LOT of walks (not so much this past month). Once he gets back into his groove Adam will have him and Brian on when he comes up. Finally, there is the mental aspect. We can’t know for sure, but I’d imagine Nick isn’t feeling too confident right now. He has less ABs in his career in the #2 spot, but has always had better numbers. Maybe a switch up could help kick him into gear.

Another benefit to moving Nick to 2nd is the L/R split thing. Whether or not you care about that, Dave does. Swapping Adam and Nick allows Melvin to be moved down in the roster, as previously he was breaking up the 2 lefties of Nick, Huff, and Scott.

Overall, I don’t think batting orders make much difference. They make some difference, but it’s not something to get worked up about. I think it’s mostly common sense.

of kakes in the 2 hole, but its making a case for itself quickly. I think I like your lineup, with the exception that i’d switch Wieters and Mora. I know numbers right now contradict the move, but the kid is gonna have to turn it around at some point and (not that I care THAT much about this kinda stuff) it would keep us from having 2 lefties followed by 2 righties.

I know he’s a WS hero and all, but in a lineup with this much potential and awesomeness, there’s no reason Mora can’t be in the 8 hole.

By the fact that Dave sat Luke two days ago against Bedard.

Let’s not even get into the absurdity of this “sit Luke against most lefties” attitude this team has, for reasons passing understanding (Luke’s career OPS vs lefties: 829; vs righties: 883 – huge difference huh?).

But sitting him in the midst of such an absurd hot streak?? For Ty freakin’ Wiggington? So illogical that it’s mind-boggling. So Dave doesn’t use his bench when he should (PR for Huff last night, giving Roberts/Markakis a day off, etc) and yet does when it comes to sitting our hottest hitter. Wow.

Oh yeah, and I agree with the lineup suggestions. Our best hitters are hitting 2 and 6…how absurd.

Reasonable Lineups don’t really add much in comparison to each other (we’re talking about an ideal lineup giving you an extra win over the course of a season). That said, it’s certainly worth getting it right. So let’s look at each of your points here:

1) Melvin Mora

This is where the reasonable part seems to leave the equation. I have no idea why Mora isn’t in the 7 or 8 hole. None. And it is ridiculous that he’s batted cleanup for the Orioles this year!

2) Adam Jones and Nick Markakis

I don’t buy it. How many of the Orioles’ 54 games so far have there been where the number of plate appearances between the 2 hole and the 3 hole are different? I’m not going to look it up, but we can assume it’s very, very few, right? Discounting the 6 games Jones didn’t play in, Nick has 1 more PA than Jones. The difference between these spots is meaningless and artificial. Markakis is in a slump. Before the slump everyone was raving about the awesome 1-2-3 hitters, and when Nick and Brian’s slumps end (and the Orioles start, not coincidentally winning again), we can go right back to raving about it.

3) Luke Scott

Fuck yeah. I was shocked to learn that Luke has an OPS+ of 169. That’s ungodly. His splits against lefties are all out of whack, and probably won’t last another month, but at least against right handed pitchers there is ZERO excuse for not putting this goofy, tree chopping, home run hitting monster at #4.

4) Matt Wieters

I’m not going to get upset about the difference between an 8 and 7 hitter, but why does Wieters get a free pass over Izturis? Izturis is hitting way better than the Deity.

So, wrapping up, I’d be happy if at least Mora and Scott were switched, but would be 100% happy if Mora were bottom three, Scott were #4, and we were talking about something that matters a little bit more than lineups. Like the hit and run, or John Gibbons qualifications as Trembley’s replacement (replacement level manager?)

1. Roberts – 2B
2. Markakis – RF
3. Jones – CF
4. Scott – DH
5. Huff – 1B
6. Reimold – LF
7. Mora – 3B
8. Wieters – C
9. Izturis – SS

Flip Scott and Huff and I’ll agree.

Although Luke has been slugging lately, he will likely tank in the near future, so instead of reshuffling the meat of your lineup every time a player hits a slump and/or heats up, just put the proven and superior batter in Aubrey ahead of Luke.

is the kind of thing that will put Trembley on the hot seat. Good! Young talent, high anticipation, lose 2 of 3 to Seattle…………..the grumbling starts now. I want a manger who is aggressive, not a gut who fills out a lineup card and just sits back. This isn’t the ‘78 Yankees, and Dave isn’t Bob Lemon. This squad needs to attack, and steal bases. We have a lot of things going for us, now. I think we’re strong up the middle, and guys are hitting for high averages. Why is there never any talk about us picking up bullpen help, the thing we really need?

when are we gonna get rid of Melvin. He is 37 and has his worst OPS ever. I mean obviously he had a great second half last year, so he should be given some time. But we need to move up someone like Reimold who could hit 5th in the future or Luke Scott. Because Im not sure when his contract runs out, but after that he is done.