Projecting the Los Angeles Dodgers 2020 lineup
Today we look at what lineup the Los Angeles Dodgers are most likely to use in 2020.
The 2020 lineup for the Los Angeles Dodgers will be a different look from the 2019 lineup that was already the best in the NL. The obvious difference here is the addition of the 2018 AL MVP Mookie Betts.
The Dodgers probably have two of the top 5 players in the MLB now with Mookie Betts and Cody Bellinger in the same outfield. Betts had a historic 2018 with a 10.4 fWAR and Bellinger did so in 2019 with a 7.8 fWAR.
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The other difference here that will potentially make this lineup even better is having Gavin Lux and Will Smith in the lineup for the majority of the games. Will Smith was incredible in his rookie season with 15 HRs and a .907 OPS in 54 games.
Lux was a bit disappointing in his 23 games played hitting only .240. That is a very small sample size and he’s the #2 ranked prospect in all of baseball for a reason. In 113 Minor League games in 2019, Lux hit .347 with a 1.028 OPS. Safe to say the guy can hit.
Then you also now have another bat to fill in the lineup with the DH in the National League in 2020.
Here is my projected lineup:
- Mookie Betts RF
- Max Muncy 1B
- Justin Turner 3B
- Cody Bellinger CF
- Corey Seager SS
- AJ Pollock DH
- Joc Pederson LF
- Will Smith C
- Gavin Lux 2B
This is around what the lineup could often look like for the Los Angeles Dodgers, but with manager Dave Roberts there will always be mixing and matching. What I am most interested to see is where Joc Pederson fits in this lineup.
Pederson was basically used exclusively as a leadoff hitter against right-handed pitchers last year. With Mookie Betts being arguably the best leadoff hitter in the game, Joc most likely won’t hit there much.
I think hitting Corey Seager behind Cody Bellinger is a better option there as Seager is going to play against both left and right-handed pitchers. While Pederson has more power, Seager is still just a better hitter as well.
Seager is definitely someone going under the radar into 2020 in such a deep lineup, but he is still very good. In a “down year” in 2019 where he was hurt some he still put up a .817 OPS and NL leading 44 doubles.
It would make sense for Lux to play every day, but with Dave Roberts, he could still possibly platoon with someone such as Kike Hernandez. Hernandez and Chris Taylor are likely to play in Pederson’s spot against lefties. Those are two of the most valuable utility players in the MLB so they will still get playing time in the shortened season.
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It certainly will be interesting to see what Dave Roberts does will this incredibly deep lineup in this shortened 2020 season. He can’t go wrong with much as long as those first 4 batters stay in the lineup. The group of Betts, Muncy, Turner, and Bellinger all rank in the top 16 in wOBA (weighted on-base average) and top 12 in wRC+ (weight runs created plus) in the MLB the past 2 years. Only a couple of other lineups can even compare to that type of core.