Jeter to Lead Off

So for the rest of the spring Jeter is going to bat 1, and Damon 2.

In reality this move should have little to no effect, but it does help the Yankees a little I think.

For some reason, managers think that the 2 hitter always has to move the runner over, hit and run and do the little things. That's fine if it's the 9th inning and you need to manufacture a run, but in the long run the 2 hole is often wasted by some weak hitting SS, check out the lineups Dusty Baker will put out this year with the Reds as evidence. The Yankees never had this problem really because Jeter was a great hitter, but occasionally Jeter would take it upon himself to bunt or do those "little" things, that a great hitter like Jeter shouldn't do.

Now that Jeter is leading off, he should only be focusing about getting on base. And Jeter is actually better at that than Damon is. Some say the best hitters on a team should be the #2 hitter because you want your best hitters to get the most at bats without having nobody on base, and the #4 htiter because you want your other best hitter to hit with the most people on base. When Arod is healthy, why not keep Jeter at the leadoff, put Teixeira 2nd, Damon 3rd, and Arod 4th with the rest of the lineup being business as usual? You can't say Damon doesn't have the power, because he doesn't have any less than Abreu. And recently, Abreu isn't the OBP machine he used to be.

I like that Girardi isn't afraid to shake things up a little, but I hope he doesn't shake it up too much. Players tend to play a little better in defined roles, it would suit the Yankees best if they choose something and stick with it. So far I like this move, but if in April it turns to Damon back leading off, and then May back to Jeter leading off with Damon 3 when Arod gets back, and then June back to Jeter leading off, I won't be impressed.