Baseball’s batting lineup has changed from what seemed to make sense to what the numbers show as optimal. Neil Paine and Michelle Pera-McGhee for The Pudding show the shifts.
No place in the lineup showcases how the game has changed more than the No. 2 slot. Remember how the second spot in the order used to be all about making contact and moving runners over? Now, the data say that your best overall hitter should hit second rather than third, as originally believed. At the No. 2 spot, they will come to the plate more often, and less frequently with two outs. This is why better overall hitters — and especially better power hitters, like Trout, Seager, and Ohtani, hit in the 2-hole more than they ever did in the past.
