Where Matt Olson Fits Into the Atlanta Braves Lineup

Brian Snitker has finally done some tinkering to the Atlanta Braves lineup, which included moving Matt Olson to fifth.

For the majority of his managerial career, which is a really good resume, Snitker has been very hesitant to mix-up the lineup very often -- especially at the top.

In 2019 when the offense was struggling to start the season a lot of people were clamoring for him to move Ronald Acuna Jr. back to leadoff. He finally did and the offense took off and Ronnie has been there ever since.

Even last year, Matt Olson and Austin Riley went through some rough stretches to being the season so Snitker moved them down in the order until they got going again -- but it took several weeks of evidence before he made the change.

And this year there has been a lot of talk about whether or not Matt Olson belongs in the two-hole.

On one hand, he gets on base a ton, which is what you want at the top of the order.

But he also strikes out a lot and doesn't have any speed, which are also elements you typically want at the top of the order.

Other than the walks, he fits the profile of someone who should be hitting fourth or fifth in a lineup. He's now started at least 132 games in each of the 2-5 spots in the lineup (It's worth noting he has an OPS over .800 from each spot of the order.)

Batting second he has an .809 OPS and batting fifth he has an .874 OPS. His best production has come from the cleanup spot where has a .903 OPS in 164 games.

It's not as if he's been a bad player in the second spot this year with an .830 OPS, but his assets may be best served lower in the order.

Thursday was the first time all year he didn't bat second and he had 2 hits, a home run, and hit a groundball to the right side to move a runner to third who eventually scored.

The problem Snitker and the Braves have is there isn't really a great fit for the two-hole.

If Michael Harris II were to fully turn things around and be the player he was much of 2022, then he's likely the best option.

Ozzie Albies is getting the opportunity there now, but he's one of the worst on-base guys on the team and is highly aggressive at the plate; although, he's been a little more patient this season seeing 3.92 pitches per plate appearance, which would be the highest of his career.

Albies has also been a streaky hitter over his career. But his overall numbers in the two-hole (.280/.323/.463) are very solid and that's where he's spent the most time in his career (205 games).

Constructing a lineup is one of the biggest jobs of a manager/front office. The Braves have been a team that generally set it and leave it, but perhaps it's time to be more fluid based on how a player is performing and the matchups.

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