Rethinking Hanley

A couple days ago, I opined for Hanley to stay in the 3 spot. It was in response to an appeal by Craig of Fish Stripes.

The central thesis to my argument was that the lineup had performed well, even with Hanley's struggles, and that he would snap out of it. As I watched Hanley ride the bench on a "mental dayoff," however, I found myself rethinking things. Here's my dilemma:

1. I much prefer the way the rest of the lineup wraps around Hanley in the 3 hole, particularly in Willingham's absence. Cody Ross responded well to the leadoff spot, and Hermida seems to have picked things up with Hanley behind him. Uggla's ridiculousness is a whole story in itself.

2. Hanley has been terrible. It's not even that he's making outs...it's strikeout after strikeout. Maybe he needs some kind of change to get his game going again.

So in retrospect, I no longer endorse Hanley to stay in the third spot. Congratulations Craig, for convincing me here, and thanks for the reference!