News
Hill, Lind may get new lineup spots in '10
Toronto (73-84) at Boston (91-65), 7:10 p.m. ET
By John Barone / MLB.com
09/29/09 1:29 AM ET
BOSTON -- A pair of bright spots in an otherwise forgettable season for the Blue Jays, Aaron Hill and Adam Lind could be in line for a promotion next season.Well, sort of.
Manager Cito Gaston has been hesitant to interrupt the career years of his second baseman and designated hitter/left fielder -- who have regularly occupied the second and third spots in the Toronto lineup this season, respectively -- by sliding the sluggers down in the batting order. After all, their combined 67 home runs and 214 RBIs through Monday suggest a comfort level Gaston has no intention of disrupting.
But once next spring rolls around, the Jays' skipper is eager to explore options for the lineup placement of his top two hitters going into 2010.
"We've talked about moving Hill down to third and maybe moving Lind down to fourth," said Gaston, whose club will continue its three-game series with the Red Sox on Tuesday at Fenway Park. "I didn't want to move them down during the season, because these guys have done a pretty good job in the spots that they're in. Sometimes, when you move guys around that way, they start to think they've got to do more.
"Those two guys, all they have to do is continue to do what they've done."
What they've done is carry an offense that was one of baseball's best early in 2009 before fizzling out in recent months. But for all the issues that have dogged the Blue Jays this season, Hill (.285, 35 homers and 104 RBIs) and Lind (.302, 32 homers and 110 RBIs) have been rocks of consistency that will likely be the centerpieces of Toronto's '10 lineup.
Precisely where the duo will be slotted, however, remains to be seen. As for a Hill-Lind Nos. 3-4 combination?
"You might see that," Gaston said. "We'll experiment with it in Spring Training and see what happens."
Pitching matchupTOR: LHP Ricky Romero (12-9, 4.28 ERA)
Romero continued his bid for the American League Rookie of the Year Award last Thursday at Rogers Centre, yielding three runs over 6 1/3 innings in a no-decision against the Mariners. The 24-year-old left-hander is just 2-5 with a 5.75 ERA in his past 10 starts. In four appearances against the Red Sox this season, Romero is 0-3 with an 8.83 ERA. BOS: RHP Clay Buchholz (7-3, 3.21 ERA)
The right-hander has been nothing short of dominant of late. Buchholz has turned in a quality start in nine of his past 10 outings. He fired 6 2/3 shutout innings in his last start, a win over the Royals on Thursday. In September, Buchholz is 4-0 with a 1.38 ERA in five starts. In six starts at Fenway, Buchholz is 2-1 with a 2.72 ERA. In three starts against the Blue Jays, he is 3-0 with a 1.35 ERA. Tidbits
Shortstop Marco Scutaro remains day-to-day with a right heel injury. ... All 35 of Hill's home runs this season have come while playing second base, the most by an AL player at that position since Alfonso Soriano cracked 36 roundtrippers with the Rangers in 2005. ... The Jays have hit 27 homers over their past 16 games. ... First baseman Lyle Overbay is batting .364 (16-for-44) over his past 13 contests. Tickets
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• Wednesday: Blue Jays (Roy Halladay, 16-10, 2.90) at Red Sox (Tim Wakefield, 11-4, 4.33), 7:10 p.m. ET
• Thursday: Off-day
• Friday: Blue Jays (David Purcey, 1-2, 5.28) at Orioles (Jason Berken, 5-12, 6.51), 7:05 p.m. ET
John Barone is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
