Jake Arrieta is a right-handed pitcher, and that means we have no alarms and no surprises for the lineup the Giants are planning to use in Game 3 of the Division Series.
- Denard Span - CF
- Brandon Belt - 1B
- Buster Posey - C
- Hunter Pence - RF
- Angel Pagan - LF
- Brandon Crawford - SS
- Joe Panik - 2B
- Conor Gillaspie - 3B
- Madison Bumgarner - P
There are two changes. Angel Pagan and Brandon Crawford were flip-flopped in the batting order, as were Joe Panik and Conor Gillaspie. So if you were calling 808-KNBR to suggest those very important moves, good news. Otherwise, it’s mostly the same lineup.
The Cubs will counter with a couple of changes of their own, most notably putting Jorge Soler into the cleanup spot against the left-handed Bumgarner.
- Dexter Fowler - CF
- Kris Bryant - 3B
- Anthony Rizzo - 1B
- Jorge Soler - LF
- Ben Zobrist - RF
- Addison Russell - SS
- Javier Baez - 2B
- Miguel Montero - C
- Jake Arrieta - P
Only Rizzo and Montero are dedicated left-handed hitters, but that’s about two more than Bumgarner usually faces.
The Giants’ season is on the line, and Angel Pagan is hitting fifth. Okay? Okay. Sure, whatever, fine, why not, this is okay. Score seven runs or so, please.