What Should Phillies’ Lineup Look Like When Bryce Harper Returns?
After missing the past five weeks with a fractured thumb, the Phillies wlll be welcoming Bryce Harper back to their lineup by Monday.
When he returns, Harper will be the DH and likely bat third in the first of a three-game series with Arizona. Harper smacked a pair of home runs in his Triple-A rehab assignment on Tuesday night, so getting him back before Monday is certainly a possibility, he is eligible to off the the 60-day I.L on Thursday.
So the big question will be what will the Phillies lineup look like when Harper returns?
The biggest move could be for Alec Bohm, who is currently occupying the No. 3 spot in the order and hitting .341 since Bryce Harper's injury, which ranks second in the National League, behind only Freddie Freeman, according to Corey Siedman of NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Could the Phillies move Bohm up in the lineup to the No. 2 spot, moving Rhys Hoskins behind Harper to the No. 4 position? How about just bumping everyone down a spot with Bohm hitting No. 4, J.T. Realmuto No. 5 and Nick Castellanos six in the order.
Another possibility could be more drastic, moving rookie Bryson Stott to the leadoff spot with Bohm hitting second, Harper third, Hoskins fourth, Kyle Schwarber moving to the more RBI-Driven fifth spot in the lineup and having Realmuto hit sixth, Castellanos seventh, Jean Segura eighth and Brandon Marsh hitting ninth.
As far as Stott in the leadoff spot, he has 24 at-bats there, hitting .333 with an on-base percentage of .360 in just five games, a very small sample size.
So what should the Phillies lineup look like?
I like
1. Stott
2. Bohm
3. Harper
4. Hoskins
5. Schwarber
6. Realmuto
7. Castellanos
8. Segura
9. Marsh
A nice blend of left-right-left-right-left-right from one to six in the order. The only concern is having two lefties back-to-back at No. 9 and one with Marsh and Stott.
Overall, I like having Hoskins and Schwarber in more of a position to drive in runs, hitting behind Harper.
What do you think Rob Thomson will do? What would you do with the Phillies lineup when Harper returns?