Well, it looks like John McLaren isn’t done changing lineups around yet. He rolled out a different one today….

1. Ichiro CF (.276-1-2)

2. Lopez 2B (.269-2-7)

3. Beltre 3B (.292-1-3)

4. Ibanez LF (.308-2-4)

5. Sexson 1B (.217-1-3)

6. Wilkerson RF (.059-0-0)

7. Vidro DH (.115-2-3)

8. Johjima C (.095-0-1)

9. Betancourt (.333-0-1)

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Erik Bedard P

I don’t know what to think. Ibañez has been hitting well, so why move him from the third spot? But maybe he has a chance to drive in more runs batting cleanup. Look at the averages of the six, seven and eight hitters – it’s pathetic. Not exactly a murderer’s row of hitters… and Vidro and Johjima aren’t exactly speed demons.

I don’t see how there is any great shift to get those bottom guys going. My biggest fear is McLaren moving Vidro back to No. 2 to try to get him going. Lopez is actually hitting there, paying attention in games. He needs to stay there.

I know we’re all getting pretty negative here, me included, but like McLaren I’m going to say it’s not time to panic. I know that the last four days were awful and the Orioles hadn’t swept a team in like three years, but a lot of things went right for them to do so. It wasn’t like Huff was exactly tearing the cover off the ball when he hit that homer. It is early in the season. Need proof? Look at these standings:

AL West

Los Angeles 5-3

Texas 3-3

Oakland 3-4

Seattle 2-5

AL East

Baltimore 5-1

Toronto 4-2

New York 4-3

Tampa 4-3

Boston 3-4

AL Central

Chicago 5-2

Kansas City 4-2

Cleveland 3-4

Minnesota 3-4

Detroit 0-6

It’s easy to point out what’s wrong with that pictur, but here are some numbers that are tough to ignore:

Seattle is hitting .225, second worst in the AL, just ahead of Oakland at .218. They have the second fewest doubles, no triples and nine home runs.

Defensively, the Mariners are currently the worst defensive team in the AL with a .970 fielding percentage and a league-high eight errors.

I’m bringing a new positive attitude to Tampa-St. Pete. It’s warm here, 85 and muggy, perfect running weather for me. It’s a new day and a new series, so I’m vowing to stay positive till at least the third inning. I’m going back down to the clubhouse. But I’ll post some links and answers some questions when I get back….

Oh and here’s the D-Backs lineup…

Iwamura 2b

Crawford LF

Pena 1B

Upton CF

Gomes DH

Aybar 3B

Riggans C

Johnson RF

Bartlett SS

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Matt Garza P