Lineup Lowdown: National 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.

To track all the latest changes around the league, visit our MLB batting order changes and MLB playing time changes pages. For today's lineups, head to our MLB Daily Lineups page.

Atlanta Braves

– The disappointing Jarred Kelenic was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett in late April, and on a related note, Eli White has made 11 straight starts (nine in right field, two in left field). All 11 of those starts for White — who bats right-handed — have come against right-handed pitching. The 30-year-old has managed a 1.016 OPS with two home runs and one stolen base over this span, which is a far cry from the career .568 OPS he had in five big-league seasons coming into the year. While it's unlikely White will continue to hit, he could be useful from a stolen-base perspective while he's playing regularly.

– From April 12-19, Sean Murphy started seven straight games, with six of them coming at catcher. However, in the Braves' last five series, Murphy has started the first two games of each three-game set before yielding to Drake Baldwin in each of the series finales. A similar playing time breakdown at the catcher position should be expected moving forward as long as Baldwin is on the roster, as Atlanta doesn't want the 24-year-old to go long stretches without playing.

Miami Marlins

– Eric Wagaman has become a lineup staple for the Marlins, making 17 straight starts and 21 starts across their last 22 contests. Most of his starts this season have come at designated hitter, but he's seen increased reps in left field lately, making five starts there across his last 10 tilts. With Griffin Conine (shoulder) done for the season and Jesus Sanchez focusing mostly on center field, left field could be Wagaman's home most days. Wagaman hasn't hit lower than fifth during the aforementioned 21-game stretch, but that could change if he doesn't pick things back up at the plate, as he's cooled off since late April.

– Javier Sanoja has started all three games at second base since Otto Lopez (ankle) was injured and eventually went on the IL. Sanoja could be the regular at the keystone while Lopez misses the next 2-to-3 weeks and might run enough to have some deep league utility. As someone who has Connor Norby rostered in a couple spots, I wouldn't mind him being used at second base enough to pick up eligibility there, but I wouldn't count on it happening, as the Marlins seem to much prefer him at third base. 

Philadelphia Phillies

– The Phillies came into the season proclaiming that they wanted to use Max Kepler and Brandon Marsh essentially in everyday roles. Kepler was in the lineup the first two times the club faced a southpaw but has been on the bench for the six games against lefties since then. Marsh also started the first two versus left-handers, then sat three of four against them before going on the IL and was on the bench Sunday against a southpaw in his second game back off the IL. Kyle Schwarber made his third start of the season in left field Sunday, inching closer to outfield eligibility, but Weston Wilson should be the main guy at that position versus lefties.

– Alec Bohm has been down in the No. 8 spot in the Phillies' lineup for 13 of his last 15 starts versus right-handed pitching, and he hit seventh in those other two games. The 28-year-old is batting .284 but slugging just .365 over that span. He's slugging an embarrassing .283 for the season and is still looking for his first home run.

Washington Nationals

– Jose Tena made just two starts in the Nationals' first 17 games of the season. However, since Paul DeJong (nose) went down in mid-April, Tena has started all but one game versus right-handed pitching and also started one contest against a left-hander. Tena has been slumping of late at the dish, however. Ten of Amed Rosario's 13 starts this season have been against lefties, but he started against a righty Sunday and even batted second.

– Dylan Crews still hasn't batted higher than sixth against a right-hander all season, and the only time he's hit higher than fifth versus a lefty was in the second game of the season. The counting stats for Crews (four home runs, nine stolen bases) have been fine, but he's sporting a lowly .573 OPS and, after finally appearing to heat up for a stretch, has fallen back into a slump lately in his last seven games (2-for-26).

Chicago Cubs

– Over the past seven games, Dansby Swanson has been down in the No. 8 spot in the Cubs' lineup, a significant drop from where he had been slotted in in the five hole. Perhaps he's received the message, as Swanson is slashing .462/.481/.885 with three home runs since the demotion. Swanson's best shot of moving back up in the batting order might be Carson Kelly eventually cooling off.

– Speaking of Kelly, he's batted either fourth or fifth over his last five starts. Miguel Amaya is holding his own offensively, as well, and isn't going to be buried, which means Kelly isn't going to play as often as your typical No. 1 catcher. He's trending up in that regard, however, starting 62.5 percent of the Cubs' games across his last 16 contests after receiving 45 percent of the starts before that.

Cincinnati Reds

– Noelvi Marte has occupied third base in 13 of the Reds' last 15 tilts. He batted eighth in the first two of those starts but in the last four has batted cleanup. However, Marte has scuffled at the dish over the past week and has yielded third base to Santiago Espinal in each of the last two contests against right-handers. Marte is still likely at the top of the pecking order at the hot corner for the Reds, particularly with Jeimer Candelario (back) out indefinitely and having struggled mightily before getting hurt.

– Tyler Stephenson has started all four games since coming off the IL (two at catcher, two at designated hitter), hitting seventh in his first game back and sixth in the three contests since then. Using Stephenson some at DH allows the Reds to continue giving reps to Jose Trevino, who has played well, although Austin Hays (hamstring) will soak up some at-bats at DH when he returns later this week.

Milwaukee Brewers

– Jackson Chourio has been the Brewers' center fielder since Garrett Mitchell (oblique) went down, holding down the spot in each of his last eight starts. That has opened up left field primarily for Isaac Collins, who has drawn six starts there over the aforementioned eight-game span. Collins has even hit second in each of the last two contests, with one coming against a righty and one against a lefty.

– The Brewers have, as manager Pat Murphy indicated they would, handed the third base job over to Caleb Durbin following the infielder's promotion in mid-April. He's started all but two games at the hot corner over that span and made an additional start at second base. Durbin has mostly hit ninth but has inched up to the No. 7 spot in his last two starts and four of the last seven tilts.

Pittsburgh Pirates

– Isaiah Kiner-Falefa has gone down with a hamstring injury, and in five games since then Jared Triolo has served as the Pirates' everyday shortstop. His double-play partner has been Adam Frazier, who continues to serve as Pittsburgh's primary second baseman since Nick Gonzales fractured his ankle on Opening Day. It's a double-play combo lacking in offensive punch, to put it mildly.

– Tommy Pham has provided next to nothing from an offensive perspective and, as a result, has seen his playing time dip lately. Pham did start each of the last two games in left field, but before that he had yielded to Alexander Canario at the position in three straight contests. Canario hasn't done any hitting, either, but there will come a point in time, if Pham doesn't right the ship, where the Pirates decide to roll with youth.

St. Louis Cardinals

– Masyn Winn saw his fantasy stock tumble when he went from being the perceived leadoff hitter for the Cardinals to their No. 9 hitter for the first month of the season. However, Winn's arrow is pointing back up now that he's batted second in each of his last five starts. The 23-year-old is slashing .324/.397/.515 with three homers and two stolen bases since the beginning of April.

– After sitting out four games in a row, Alec Burleson has since started six straight versus right-handed pitching. He's even batted second in two of his last three starts, as aforementioned Winn sat out the first game of a doubleheader for one of those and missed the other with an ankle injury (he's expected to be fine). Burleson has homered in two straight tilts, and his increased playing time has come at the expense of Jordan Walker (one start over the last four games) and Nolan Gorman (three starts over the last five contests).

Arizona Diamondbacks

 - With Ketel Marte back from the injured list, Geraldo Perdomo has reverted back to the No. 9 spot in the batting order. It's a big downgrade for Perdomo, who batted second versus right-handers and leadoff against left-handers while Marte was shelved. Perdomo will still have value if he keeps up with what has been a breakout offensive season, although he's a pretty obvious regression candidate, anyway, in the power and speed departments. There's a 34-point gap between Perdomo's xwOBA (.382) and wOBA (.348) and he's already matched last year's stolen-base total in spite of a sprint speed in the 40th percentile.

– Over the last week, we've seen the downside of rostering Pavin Smith. He did make one start against a lefty and reached base three times that day, but he was on the bench the other two times the Diamondbacks faced a southpaw and another time when they went up against a lefty bulk reliever. It also doesn't help that Smith is 2-for-25 over his last 10 games. I still think he's going to remain mixed-league viable for the remainder of the season, but he can be at the mercy of Arizona's schedule.

Colorado Rockies

– Jordan Beck was sent down to Triple-A Albuquerque in early April following a dreadful start to the season, but he returned on April 19 and has collected a 1.073 OPS with five home runs and a stolen base. As a result, Beck has been situated in the two hole in Colorado's lineup for each of the last nine games. The 24-year-old has still struck out more than one–third of the time even during his hot streak, so the swing-and-miss concerns remain. However, Beck does have loads of power and speed and a friendly home park.

– Michael Toglia has begun to inch his way back up the Rockies' batting order, as he hasn't hit lower than fifth in the team's last nine contests and peaked at third over that stretch. He had seemed to be coming out of his slumber in the last two weeks of April but has gone hitless so far in May. Toglia has dropped his strikeout rate to 23.6 percent over his last 15 games after it was an obscene 48.6 percent in his first 18 contests.

Los Angeles Dodgers

– Tommy Edman landed on the 10-day IL with an ankle injury and taking his spot on the roster was Hyeseong Kim. Kim, though, wasn't in the lineup for either of the first two games upon his promotion before starting the third game and reaching base twice. The 26-year-old has stolen two bases already in limited action after swiping 13 at Triple-A Oklahoma City, so he has the potential to help in the speed department if given regular reps. It seems that's far from a sure thing, but Teoscar Hernandez (groin) getting hurt might alter the equation.

– James Outman was recalled to take Hernandez's roster spot and drew the start in center field in the Dodgers' first game without Hernandez, with Andy Pages shifting to right field. It's possible Outman — who had just a .521 OPS last season — will continue to see regular starts in center field against righties while Hernandez is out, but Edman is due back soon and can play center field, as can Kim.

San Diego Padres

– The Padres summoned Luis Campusano from Triple-A El Paso this past weekend and immediately handed him three straight starts at DH against lefties, batting him fifth each time. It could be just a short-term solution as the Padres navigate through a southpaw-heavy schedule, especially with Jackson Merrill's (hamstring) return imminent and Jake Cronenworth (rib) not far behind.

– Gavin Sheets has maintained a middle-of-the-order spot against right-handers, occupying either the second or fourth slot across the last 10 contests in such situations. Sheets entered play Tuesday with just a .484 OPS and 39.4 percent strikeout rate over his last 10 games, however, so when the Padres get healthier he'll drop in the batting order and might sit against some right-handers.

San Francisco Giants

– Christian Koss has been handed starts at second base in four of five contests since Tyler Fitzgerald (rib) was hurt, batting ninth on each occasion. He and Brett Wisely could wind up sharing the second-base duties until Fitzgerald returns later this month. There's unlikely to be much, if any, fantasy relevance there.

– With Casey Schmitt (oblique) shelved, David Villar has been getting starts at first base against left-handed pitching as the short-side platoon partner with LaMonte Wade. Wade has yet to get going at the dish, and Wilmer Flores has also faded after a red-hot start. That's notable with Jerar Encarnacion (hand) poised for a rehab assignment and a likely return when first eligible May 23.