Lineup Lowdown: American League

The goal with Lineup Lowdown is simple: we're looking for trends which could help identify players that might be undervalued or overvalued. Who is playing more/less? Who is moving up/down? We'll be doing a deep dive into one league each week as we navigate the lineup landscape.

Baltimore Orioles

– Ryan Mountcastle was down in the No. 8 spot in the batting order in Gunnar Henderson's first game back from the injured list. He bounced around to other spots after that but has been back down in the eight hole for the last two contests. Mountcastle finally socked his first home run over the weekend, but he's been among the Orioles' slowest starters at the plate. Coby Mayo has been on a heater lately at Triple-A Norfolk, so Mountcastle might need to pick up the pace soon.

– Heston Kjerstad has made eight straight starts in left field against right-handed pitching, taking over as the primary guy there following the injury to Colton Cowser (thumb). He's batted seventh in each of the last five contests. Unfortunately, Kjerstad has yet to do much at the plate, although, like Mountcastle, he finally socked his first homer over the weekend.

Boston Red Sox

– Thirteen of Kristian Campbell's 17 starts have been at second base, but he's also started three games in center field and one in left field. Meanwhile, manager Alex Cora has stuck to his plan of keeping Ceddanne Rafaela in center field, with all 14 of his starts coming there. Rafaela's glove remains sublime, and while he has cut his strikeout rate down, the offensive production remains lackluster. Top prospect Roman Anthony is off to a good start at Triple-A Worcester, and it seems inevitable that he will come up to take over in left field, Jarren Duran will shift to center and Rafaela will become a utility player.

– Wilyer Abreu's bat has cooled over the past week after a scorching-hot start, but he nonetheless was elevated to the cleanup spot for each of the last two games, with Triston Casas getting bumped down to the No. 6 spot in the batting order. Casas has also been absent from the lineup each of the three times the Red Sox have faced a left-hander. This, after Cora had said Casas will be an everyday player. I fully expect Casas to come out of his funk and indeed be used in an everyday role, but his role has been lessened a bit while he's scuffling.

New York Yankees

– Manager Aaron Boone has been sticking with a "platoon" in the leadoff spot, with Ben Rice occupying the top of the lineup against righties and Paul Goldschmidt being used there versus lefties. Rice has also hit second against three of the last four southpaws. This is after he batted eighth in each of the first four games versus right-handers and sat out the first time the Yanks faced a southpaw. The 26-year-old has been one of the biggest early-season risers in fantasy. If there's a downside to Rice's hot start, it's that his bat being so good means the team is probably not going to mess around with using him at catcher, so if you were initially rostering him with the hope he'd gain eligibility there, you're probably going to be disappointed.

– Jasson Dominguez hit sixth on Opening Day and has batted as high as fifth, but in the last game the Yankees had all of their regulars in the lineup, the young outfielder hit eighth. The switch hitter boasts a .971 OPS against righties but is just 1-for-20 versus lefties, which continues a theme since he's arrived in the big leagues. Dominguez has started four of five tilts against southpaws, but we could see that trend change if he doesn't show signs of progress from the right side of the plate.

Tampa Bay Rays

– Christopher Morel was in the lineup just four times in the first eight contests, but he has since made eight straight starts. He hasn't hit lower than fifth this season and was in the cleanup spot each of the last two games against lefties. Additionally, Morel has become a full-time outfielder for the Rays thus far, with every inning he's played this season coming in left field.

– Jose Caballero has also become more of an outfielder for the Rays given all the injuries the club has dealt with in its outfield. Caballero has started four of the last six tilts (two versus righties), and three of those starts have been in right field. The 28-year-old didn't play a single inning in the outfield for Tampa Bay last season.

Toronto Blue Jays

– Nathan Lukes is tied for the team lead with seven starts in center field and has occupied the position four of the last five times they've faced a right-hander. Myles Straw also has seven starts at the position, with four of them coming against lefties. Straw is actually hitting well in the early going (Lukes is not), but the Jays are surely eager to get Daulton Varsho (shoulder) back. It shouldn't be long, as Varsho is nearing a rehab assignment.

– Alan Roden has started 13 of 17 games thus far, and the left-handed hitter has been in there for all but one contest against right-handers. Unfortunately, while Roden has graded out very well as a defender while playing primarily in left field, his bat has yet to come around. Nine of his 13 starts have come from the No. 9 spot in the batting order.

Chicago White Sox

– The White Sox summoned Chase Meidroth from Triple-A Charlotte last week and handed him three straight starts, with two of them coming at second base (both versus lefties) and one at shortstop (against a righty). Meidroth has batted seventh once and sixth twice, but it should only be a matter of time before he's moved up in the order considering his on-base skills are far and away his best asset. Miguel Vargas has hit leadoff in all three games since Meidroth's promotion, but he continues to struggle offensively.

– Matt Thaiss had started seven of nine games versus righties before Korey Lee (ankle) landed on the IL and was up in the fifth spot in the lineup for five of those starts. He and Omar Narvaez have made two starts apiece since then, with two of those games being versus lefties. Kyle Teel and/or Edgar Quero should stake claim to the White Sox's catcher job eventually, but Thaiss is getting on base at a nice clip.

Cleveland Guardians

– Gabriel Arias has been an everyday player for the Guardians, starting 13 of 15 contests (nine at second base, two apiece at third base and shortstop). He also continues to inch his way up in the batting order, as he hit sixth twice and a season-high fifth once during the weekend series versus the Royals. Contact continues to be a major issue for Arias (29.4 percent strikeout rate), but he went deep twice against Kansas City.

– Lane Thomas (wrist) hasn't played in a week, but so far the Guardians have resisted the urge to place him on the IL. Cleveland initially slid Nolan Jones over to center field for the first two games in Thomas' absence, but since then Angel Martinez was recalled and has started three straight in center. If Thomas does wind up landing on the IL, it seems Martinez would be the primary beneficiary.

Detroit Tigers

– Gleyber Torres (oblique) returned from the IL this past weekend and was immediately plugged into the leadoff spot twice in three games versus a righty (he sat out the other). With Torres back at second base, Colt Keith — and not Spencer Torkelson — was used in the DH spot in those two contests. Torkelson has been far and away the club's best hitter so far this season, having started all 16 contests and batted either third or fourth in all of them. Justyn-Henry Malloy had made seven straight starts at DH before Torres returned but has been on the bench for two of four tilts since.

– Javier Baez has started seven of the last eight contests, including three of the last four at third base versus right-handed pitching. The domino effect has been Zach McKinstry playing more right field, Kerry Carpenter shifting to left and Riley Greene handling center.

Kansas City Royals

– Maikel Garcia has made 10 starts at third base, two starts at second base, two starts in center field and one start at DH for the Royals. Bouncing around all over the field has not affected Garcia's offense, as he's been the Royals' best hitter this season not named Bobby Witt. While Garcia has mostly hit in the lower third of the lineup, he batted leadoff Sunday when Jonathan India (quad) was unavailable and hit sixth Monday.

– After starting eight of the first 10 games of the season, Hunter Renfroe has not made consecutive starts since then. Cavan Biggio and MJ Melendez have each drawn a couple starts in right field during the latter stretch. Renfroe has posted just a .363 OPS this season and a .659 OPS since joining the Royals last year.

Minnesota Twins

– After starting in the leadoff spot each of the first 13 times the Twins faced a right-hander, Matt Wallner has been the cleanup man each of the last two games versus righties. Elevated to the top of the batting order in those two contests has been Edouard Julien, who has been in the lineup for 12 of the past 13 tilts. Julien has split his time between second base (seven starts) and DH (five starts).

– Carlos Correa batted either second or third in 14 of his first 15 starts this season. However, he got his first day off Sunday and then was down in the No. 5 spot Monday. He's managed to stay healthy thus far, but Correa is off to a brutal start at the plate with just a .456 OPS and zero home runs.

Houston Astros

– Ten of Jose Altuve's 16 starts have been at his new position in left field, while he has occupied his old second base spot and the DH slot three times apiece. Left field will remain his primary position, but if you're thinking ahead to 2026, it's looking like Altuve will have a good chance to retain second-base eligibility. Meanwhile, Yordan Alvarez has started four games in left field. The Astros had voiced a desire to mostly keep him at DH, and while that's held true, Alvarez also appears to have a good shot to retain outfield eligibility for 2026.

– Jake Meyers was surprisingly held out of the starting nine four times in the club's first seven tilts, but he's started in center field eight times across the last nine contests. Meyers' offense hasn't come along yet, but he has been running a lot early on with five steals in six attempts. Last year's 11 stolen bases were a career high for the 28-year-old.

Los Angeles Angels

– Kyren Paris started just two of the first seven games for the Angels, but manager Ron Washington hasn't been able to keep the 23-year-old's white-hot bat out of the lineup since then, handing him eight straight starts. All but one of those last eight starts have been at second base, with Luis Rengifo shifting over to third base to cover for Yoan Moncada (thumb). Paris has been stuck in the No. 7 spot in the batting order, but there's certainly an opportunity to move up if his start proves to be even somewhat for real.

– After Kevin Newman started four of the first seven tilts at shortstop, it's been Tim Anderson at the position for six of the last eight games. Anderson also made an additional start at second base during that stretch. Unfortunately, Anderson has shown zero indication that he's rediscovered his old form at the plate. He could be on the chopping block when Zach Neto (shoulder) returns, which should be soon.

Sacramento Athletics

– Tyler Soderstrom batted sixth on Opening Day, but he's creeped up in the batting order since then and has spent each of the last six games in the three hole. The Athletics have faced only two lefties so far, but the left-handed hitting Soderstrom has been in the lineup for both of them and remained in the three spot for the latter one. Fellow lefty bat JJ Bleday started the season hitting third but has hit fifth the last four games against righties and batted sixth versus the lone southpaw over that stretch.

– Jacob Wilson was in the No. 9 spot for five of his first six starts this season. Since then, though, he's occupied the Nos. 6 and 7 spots four times, the five spot once and even hit leadoff once against a lefty. Wilson's batted-ball data remains lackluster, but he has managed a couple home runs already after hitting four during spring training. He's also sporting just a 4.9 percent strikeout rate and boasts a .338 xBA to go along with his .344 average.

Seattle Mariners

– Jorge Polanco began the season batting sixth for the Mariners, inched up to fifth and then missed some action first due to paternity leave and then because of a side injury. His last five starts, however, have all been from the No. 3 spot in the lineup, as Polanco has been easily Seattle's best hitter in the early going. Polanco has been limited to DH duties due to the side issue and is expected to remain there for a bit longer. The switch hitter is also unable to bat righty for the time being.

– Ryan Bliss unfortunately needs surgery to repair a biceps tear, which will cost him 4-to-5 months. Surprisingly, it's been Miles Mastrobuoni — and not Dylan Moore — who has been the biggest beneficiary so far, starting all four games since Bliss went down (three at third base, one at second base). Moore (one at third base, one at second base) and Leo Rivas (both at second base) have drawn two starts apiece during that span.

Texas Rangers

– Josh Smith keeps finding his way into the Rangers' lineup. He's started 13 of 16 contests and has done so at five different positions already. Over the last three games, Smith has batted third and played left field twice, effectively sliding into the spot vacated by the injured Wyatt Langford (oblique). The super utility player is off to a red-hot start at the plate, just as he did last year before he faded in the second half.

– Jonah Heim made four starts to Kyle Higashioka's five over the first nine games of the season, but Heim has been in the lineup six times across the last seven tilts. Two of those came at DH against lefties. The switch hitter has always been better versus southpaws but has taken it to an extreme level this season in a very small sample size, boasting a 1.286 OPS against left-handers and a .667 OPS versus righties.