Brian Roberts has spent nearly his entire career as a leadoff man, hitting there in 93 percent of his 1,200 starts, but the Orioles have decided to shift him to the bottom of the lineup as he comes back from multiple concussions.
Roberts took the demotion well, basically saying that he’s happy to simply be feeling healthy for the first time in years and understands at age 35 a less prominent role would probably make sense regardless of health.
Of course, if Roberts returns to anything resembling his old form--which included a .364 on-base percentage and 35 steals per 150 games from 2004-2010--the Orioles will want him back atop the lineup soon enough. For now though he’ll bat ninth for the first time since 2004.
