With the big guy finally in the fold, Jon Weisman looks at the lineup and likes what he sees:
Torre's 2009 Dodgers starting lineup will be different, but mine would alternate left- and right-handed hitters. Either way, it's pleasing.(S) Rafael Furcal, SS
(R) Russell Martin, C
(L) Andre Ethier, RF
(R) Manny Ramirez, LF
(L) James Loney, 1B
(R) Matt Kemp, CF
(S) Orlando Hudson, 2B
(R) Casey Blake, 3B
Gosh, that's an impressive lineup. The No. 6 hitter is going to hit 20 homers and steal 30 bases this season. The No. 7 hitter is a Gold Glove second baseman who's been a better-than-average National League hitter in each of the past three seasons. And the No. 8 hitter is a pretty solid bet for 20 home runs.
Granted, as Weisman notes, this won't be Torre's lineup, precisely. But the take-home message is that it really doesn't matter where everyone hits. All of them can hit, and you're going to score just about as many runs whether you've got Blake leading off and Furcal batting eighth as the other way around. This is the sort of lineup, with no real breaks for the enemy pitcher until the ninth spot, that most teams may only dream about.
Rob Neyer
