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The solution to our lineup? Probably not though

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**Disclaimer: This was written without much thought put in. This also assumes Maybin and EYJ maintain their production.

As we rest on our laurels, coming off series wins against the Tigers and Astros, I sit here, delirious, wondering how we could possibly leave Cameron Maybin at the top of the lineup while Eric Young Jr. gets to play as well, in addition to our fabulous Fat-Boy Mike Trout once he returns from injury. In addition to those three outstanding outfielders, we also have Kole Calhoun, a GOLD GLOVE outfielder. The Gold Glove is key for the rest of the article.

Four outstanding outfielders, with Albert Pujols entrenched at DH, means that one has to rest. Or does that have to happen? EYJ at 2nd has been floated around, but that's very unlikely. The only thing left to do is to come up with an even more unlikely scenario.

Calhoun at 1st.

Hear me out. Calhoun has played **some** first base (44 games professionally) and is a Gold Glove outfielder. His arm is fantastic and holds runners in check from the outfield. We would lose a lot by moving him out of the position in which he has had a lot of success. Yet...I don't trust CJ Cron. There are those that are still somewhat high on him, arguing he needs consistent playing time or whatever, but the eye test tells me that he's not a major-league first baseman. He can't lay off breaking balls outside of the zone consistently enough, and he's rarely been successful at getting hits on pitches out of the zone. (Need to check facts). When you take a CJ Cron, who can't lay off the breaking ball, vs. a Danny Espinosa, who seems to be swinging right through fastballs, I'd take the Espinosa for a season. Espinosa hitting the fastball more often kind of seems inevitable, and with a swig of good luck, he can be a serviceable player. Cron with a better eye does not approach anywhere near that kind of certainty.

Furthermore, we have all heard that Cron is **improved** at first. Certainly compared to how he used to play the field, he looks a lot better. Yet his instincts and first reaction time still seems to lack. Calhoun would improve on both those aspects, in addition to the Red Baron's range.

Young Jr. has been solid in the outfield. He has the speed, and the eye test definitely passes him. His UZR was 8.8 in 2014, about Calhoun's average season. An outfield on Trout flanked by Maybin and Young Jr. would be very solid indeed.

Finally, we solve the problem of first base in the lineup. Keeping Maybin at the top of the lineup, while actually having a weapon at the bottom, coupled with letting Simmons do what he does best (quietly producing in the bottom half) means our offense can be much improved, cutting down on holes in left and at first.

Projected Lineup:

Maybin LF

Calhoun 1B

Trout CF

Pujols DH

Escobar 3B

Simmons SS

Maldonado C

Young Jr. RF

Espinosa 2B

.

Finally...I doubt EYJ will play as deep in right. ;)

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