Upton bounces around lineup in search of spark

Kirk Gibson could not have expected the reaction he got
after deciding to bat Justin Upton second in Monday
night’s game.

Upton, you know, has been the team’s number three hitter
for the better part of the last year, so the idea of
moving him up in the order was one much of the Valley was
simply not able to handle.

“He hasn’t done well with runners in scoring position
right now,” Gibson said of the decision to make the
change. “Moved him up. I did it last year for a day or
two.”

Gibson said one of the main reasons for making the move
was to balance out what was going to be a very left
handed-heavy lineup. He didn’t want them all batting
consecutively, and moving Upton — a right hander — in
the order helped.

Then again, none of this happens if Upton was finding
success at the dish. He’s hitting just .234 on the season
with three home runs and nine RBI. In short, he’s
struggling, and numbers like that don’t belong in the
three hole.

“He’s been, at times recently, we thought that he was
starting to get on track, but he hasn’t been able to get
on track,” Gibson said. “I think Justin probably presses
too hard, tries to do too much.”

Gibson talked about how Upton had his struggles last year,
too, even sitting out for a game in May before really
taking off.

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