Baseball Managers are petrified to make wholesales changes to the batting order, especially to a first place team, but actually the Nats are barely playing .500 ball (14-13) since a 16-6 start; and they are going on a West Coast trip for 9 games which can be a disaster.

If I were a manager making $1.5 to $7 Million to coach a bunch of overpaid athletes, how fun would it be to screw with the line-up and to see them act like babies. I do it all the time on my Coed Softball team and they could care less (relax that was a joke…but true).

Here is the line-up now with their OBP (On-Base-Percentage), when they are not ‘resting’ playing for their tummies hurting or a broken fingernail –

Turner .277, Werth .384, Harper .447, Zimmerman .405, Murphy .371, Rendon .391, Wieters.349, Taylor .298, Pitcher.

Here is what the line-up should be with their OBP –

Werth .384, Murphy .371, Zimmerman .405, Harper .447, Rendon .391, Wieters .349, Turner .277, Taylor .298, Pitcher.

The top five hitters in the revised line-up all have the top OPS (a short explanation – they get on base and they hit the ball farther). They also see a lot of pitches (a good batting eye) which means they wear out the starting pitchers faster.

Turner and Taylor are the best base stealers on the team, but they are not getting on base to be at the top of the order, so with the revised order, the pitcher can sacrifice them to second or third when they do. T & T can also hit for power, so in fact they can produce their own runs or be on base for the top of the order after the pitcher bats.

Obviously this makes too much sense for Dusty Baker to actually do it, but Turner and Taylor lead the team in strikeouts as well (a bad thing). Taylor is at the bottom of the order for that reason, and so should Turner until he starts hitting again.

Dusty Baker might need a meeting or two to soothe out some feelings or just do it, like most managers who make changes and ignore the players – for example like me and my Coed Softball team (again a joke…but true).