I found it a bit puzzling that Royals manager Ned Yost said part of his decision to bat Lorenzo Cain in the cleanup spot for Sunday’s game against the White Sox was indifference.
“I mean, what difference does it make who you put 3-4-5,” Yost said. “It’s not a big deal.”
I had not heard that argument from a manager before, but I just filed it away. It came back to me when I decided to take a closer look at how the Royals hitters rank based on their spot in the batting order.
The Royals’ 3-4-5 hitters are ranked near the league bottom in a number of statistical categories this season, and that should come as no surprise. Sure, the pitching has been atrocious for the Royals, but they also lack in some key offensive categories.
While they are seventh in baseball in average (.268), the Royals are tied for 19th in runs scored with 378. They are also ranked 28th in baseball in walks and 27th in home runs. The lineup sorely needs some more pop, and here’s hoping that first baseman Eric Hosmer can provide that in the near future. Or perhaps Wil Myers.
If you’re looking for a silver lining this season (and we usually are by July), there’s this:
The Royals’ No. 9 hitters are the best in baseball, batting at a .290 clip, which is 16 points higher than second-place Texas. The slugging percentage by the Royals’ ninth-place hitters is .451, which is second to the the Blue Jays (.470).
Here is a look at how the Royals rank by batting order:
Averagewith MLB ranking
1st: .289 (6th)
2nd: .257 (18th)
3rd: .228 (27th)
4th: .241 (26th)
5th: .245 (22nd)
6th: .299 (3rd)
7th: .288 (3rd)
8th: .281 (2nd)
9th: .290 (1st)
On-base percentagewith MLB ranking
1st: .369 (3rd)
2nd: .302 (25th)
3rd: .300 (28th)
4th: .317 (26th)
5th: .287 (29th)
6th: .347 (7th)
7th: .329 (7th)
8th: .327 (6th)
9th: .310 (5th)
Slugging percentagewith MLB ranking
1st: .405 (11th)
2nd: .388 (17th)
3rd: .380 (26th)
4th: .401 (25th)
5th: .387 (25th)
6th: .477 (4th)
7th: .421 (13th)
8th: .382 (10th)
9th: .451 (2nd)
| Pete Grathoff, pgrathoff@kcstar.com
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