An everyday lineup that will restore order

In the final game of the last Phillies season, Gabe Kapler started a lineup that included Cesar Hernandez, Jose Bautista, Roman Quinn, Rhys Hoskins, Carlos Santana, Odubel Herrera, Scott Kingery and Andrew Knapp. In the first game of the next Phillies season, he won’t.

In some ways, Kapler’s 2019 Opening Day batting order will be close. In enough ways, what the Phillies did last season, when they remained in contention through early September, established a lineup foundation able to support what would be coming next. At its core, it wasn’t bad. But six months later, Kapler will be able to start something great.

Since that Fan Appreciation Day offering, the Phillies have added two former MVPs and a total of three players from the last All-Star Game. That’s not an offseason; that’s a rotisserie league dream. For that, Kapler has a chore and, if he manages as he did last season, it means he has 162 chores. For it will be up to him to fit 2018 All-Stars Bryce Harper, Jean Segura and J.T. Realmuto into his batting order, and to produce results that the Phillies and their fans expect after the front office had just gone $330,000,000 for one player.

Though Kapler was notorious last season for using analytics to generate what often seemed to be violently different lineups each night, he did often project one thought. Not that it was much repeated in the press, or absorbed by the fans, he did often imply that if he had a lineup that could best produce while being predictable and stationary, he would use it and leave it alone. Well, that’s what he has this season. He has eight projected regulars who, no matter where the decimal points on his nightly pregame printouts lead, are capable and seasoned enough to play every game. Naturally, there will be the once-a-week change of catchers. Given circumstances, Kapler could choose to hit his pitcher eighth or ninth. There will be injuries, and reasons to offer veterans a rest. But John Middleton, Andy MacPhail and Matt Klentak didn’t supply their manager with an effective Dream Team of regulars just so he could try to outthink them and try to turn every lineup card into pop art.

Because there is no reason to have Grapefruit League games at all if there weren’t something for the players to try to win, Kapler technically has announced that Kingery and Maikel Franco will compete for time at third. He’d also planned an open-mic audition for Herrera and Quinn in center field, though Quinn, once again, is injured. But handicapping for a fast track, and assuming the favorites win the spring-training races, this must be Kapler’s every day order … and why:

1. Andrew McCutchen, LF: In 49 games as a leadoff hitter last season, McCutchen hit .350 and had an OPS of 1.169. Overall, he had 14 stolen bases in 2018, and the Phillies still like his speed. And batting a potential home-run hitter first would be a good way for Kapler to announce that the Phillies are not going timidly into any game.

2. J.T. Realmuto, C: Though catchers generally don’t hit that high in the order, Realmuto batted second 34 times for the Marlins last season and hit .289 in that spot. He is a contact hitter with the ability to draw a walk and would benefit from hitting in front of…

3. Bryce Harper, RF: Oddly, Kapler will argue that the second and fourth spots in the lineup are more vital than the third. Cleanup, he’ll claim, speaks for itself. And the No. 2 hitter, naturally, will have slightly more opportunities over the course of a buck-62 to stroll to the plate. But he has implied that Harper will hit third or fourth. And Harper was loosely reported to have indicated during his recruitment that he was interested in batting in between Realmuto and Hoskins.

4. Hoskins, 1B: Harper is being paid to be the franchise face. Right? Right? Or … maybe that can still be Hoskins’ role. Kapler used Hoskins out of position in many ways last season. First, he was forced to try him in left field to horrifying results. Also, he batted him second 104 times … and watched Hoskins it .226 in that spot. Rhys Hoskins is a right-handedslugging cleanup hitter. That’s what he is. That’s why he hit .296 in the four spot last season. The Phillies are committed to playing him at first and leaving him alone. They should do that, too, with his position in the batting order.

5. Odubel Herrera, CF: If only to provide a right-leftright-left-right 2-through-6 batting-order challenge to opposing managers late in games, stuff the former AllStar behind Hoskins and project his home run total to rise from 20 in 2018 to 25.

6. Maikel Franco, 3B: He has baffled multiple managers with his inability to generate consistent plate discipline, but he hit 22 home runs last season and can whistle line-drives off outfield fences. The Phillies have been waiting for his breakout season. It’s his time.

7. Cesar Hernandez, 2B: It should be Kingery, who was developed as a second baseman, and whom the Phillies should give a chance to prove that they were right. But that’s not going to happen. So Hernandez it is. He walked 95 times last season, and will be on base even more often if, as he should, Kapler bats his pitcher eighth.

8. Aaron Nola, P: Or the five-inning, fingers-crossed starter du jour.

9. Jean Segura, SS: The second leadoff hitter was a concept a century late coming to baseball. Segura hit .304 last season and should benefit from hitting in front of McCutchen.

There is room for debate. A little. But not much. It’s time for Kapler to call off his search for the elusive perfect lineup. He has one.