Quote Originally Posted by Matty Dispatch View Post
Do you really think there is a snowball's chance in hell that Snit is going to move FF and Markakis from the 3-4 spots in the lineup?

Isn't a cleanup hitter supposed to "cleanup" the bases, i.e. RBI's? Markakis is 9th in the NL in RBI with 88. Acuna hits solo shots, that's what he does. Whether it's in the 1st inning or the 5th inning, almost all his HR are solo (except yesterday he hit a 2 run). His leadoff HR are a huge boost of energy, and he's been incredible since being moved to leadoff so I'm not sure why you'd mess with a good thing.
This is backwards thinking. Cleanup hitters are in the best position to get RBI, which is why Markakis has so many. And leadoff hitters bat with runners on less than any other position, which is a large reason why Acuna has hit so many solo HR. Switch them in the order, and you will see Acuna hit fewer solo HR and Markakis have fewer RBI. That's just the way it works.

14 of Acuna's 25 HR this year have led off an inning. 8 of those have been leading off the 1st, but the other 6 have come in some other inning later in the game...because he leads off innings and/or bats without runners on more than any other player in the Braves lineup, not because he just has some bent toward hitting solo HR. Just like Markakis gets RBI because he hits with runners on most, not because he is more bent toward RBI.