We've seen some really bad lineups this year, and as with any other lineups, they only get worse as you go from the top three down on towards number nine.
But this? This is something else.
Che-Hsuan Lin will start tonight in center field, as Jacoby Ellsbury's mysterious injury "situation" persists into its sixth day. With Jose Iglesias sticking in the shortstop position, that makes for an ugly 8-9 combo--the ugliest I can remember seeing from the Sox. They're not quite identical--each is a defensive genius and offensive black hole, but Iglesias struggles with discipline while Lin could draw plenty of walks if he were threatening enough that pitchers would occasionally throw him balls.
Boston Red Sox (69-85)
- Pedro Ciriaco, DH
- Daniel Nava, LF
- Dustin Pedroia, 2B
- Cody Ross, RF
- Mauro Gomez, 1B
- Ryan Lavarnway, C
- Danny Valencia, 3B
- Che-Hsuan Lin, CF
- Jose Iglesias, SS
Tampa Bay Rays (83-70)
- Desmond Jennings, LF
- B.J. Upton, CF
- Ben Zobrist, SS
- Evan Longoria, 3B
- Luke Scott, DH
- Jeff Keppinger, 2B
- Matt Joyce, RF
- Carlos Pena, 1B
- Jose Molina, C