Needless to say, they’re not going to fare very well on the following list.
Let’s take a look at each team’s OPS out of the cleanup spot this season. Prince Fielder and Miguel Cabrera are leading the way.
1. Brewers - .984
2. Tigers - .983
3. Cardinals - .970
4. Dodgers - .969
5. Red Sox - .929
6. Marlins - .919
7. Braves - .895
8. White Sox - .892
9. Yankees - .818
10. Phillies - .816
11. Rockies - .814
12. Diamondbacks - .784
13. Mets - .777
14. Blue Jays - .768
15. Rangers - .761
16. Cubs - .758
17. Indians - .755
18. Angels - .750
19. Twins - .745
20. Astros - .730
21. Royals - .721
22. Pirates - .710
23. Orioles - .697
24. Nationals - .696
25. Giants - .686
26. Reds - .678
27. Rays - .666
28. Athletics - .663
29. Padres - .624
30. Mariners - .549
Mariners cleanup hitters have an OPS worse than Diamondbacks No. 9 hitters and 130 points worse than Seattle’s own No. 9 hitters.
The bulk of Seattle’s cleanup at-bats have gone to Jack Cust and Miguel Olivo. As disappointing as Cust has been, he’s actually been a huge improvement on the rest of the dreck:
Cust - .643 OPS in 159 PA
Olivo - .499 OPS in 131 PA
Justin Smoak - .477 OPS in 70 PA
Adam Kennedy - .469 OPS in 34 PA
Olivo, of course, leads the way in worst performance by a cleanup hitter this year. Here’s the worst, with a minimum of 100 plate appearances:
1. Olivo - .499 OPS in 131 PA
2. Scott Rolen - .553 OPS in 143 PA
3. Hideki Matsui - .576 OPS in 157 PA
4. Ryan Ludwick - .578 OPS in 192 PA
5. Adam LaRoche - .595 OPS in 132 PA
6. Evan Lonforia - .640 OPS in 131 PA
7. Justin Morneau - .642 OPS in 158 PA
8. Cust - .643 OPS in 159 PA
9. Jeff Francoeur - .664 OPS in 152 PA
10. Carlos Pena - .670 OPS in 104 PA