Braves utility man Emilio Bonifacio is batting lead-off tonight against the Dodgers with B.J. Upton in the No. 8 hole and manager Fredi Gonzalez said he’ll go with his gut to determine if it stays that way when both are in the lineup.
It’s the second time Bonifacio has hit No. 1 with regular lead-off man Upton also in the lineup.
“It will be by feel every day,” Gonzalez said. “Every day it will change a little bit. We’ll tinker.”
Upton is hitting .220 (33-for-150) with a .282 on-base percentage in 36 games and 150 at-bats as the lead-off hitter this season. Those numbers, though lackluster, are better than Upton has produced at any other slot in the lineup this season. For his career Upton is hitting .239 (214-for-897) with a .317 on-base percentage as the lead-off man.
Bonifacio is batting .278 with a .314 on-base percentage in 66 games and 62 at-bats as the No. 1 hitter with Chicago and Atlanta this year. Bonifacio’s career numbers as the No. 1 hitter: .270 average (339-for-1254) with a .324 on-base percentage.
Gonzalez said he’s less concerned with the numbers than going with his instincts when making out the lineup.
“It sounds like I’m a dinosaur,” he said. “But I think there is more of that than people let on. There is still gut feeling and feel and knowing your personnel than just strictly (going) by the numbers. I use all of it. At the end of the day you go with your gut.”
