DETROIT — Here’s a starting lineup to get used to: Todd Helton hits second and Brad Hawpe hits cleanup for tonight’s game against the Tigers at Comerica Park.
Manager Clint Hurdle, searching for a way to get the Rockies’ stagnant offense moving, said it will be the usual lineup for the foreseeable future.
“I don’t like lane changes and I try to give things some length,” Hurdle said. “I think it’s the best move for the club, and I think you can add significant value to the guys involved in the move. But first and foremost it will give us an opportunity to connect the dots from top to bottom.”
Helton has been the team’s primary cleanup hitter this season, but he’s hitting just .267 with seven homers and 28 RBIs. The Rockies hope Helton, hitting behind Willy Taveras and in front of Matt Holliday, will start swinging a productive bat.
Hawpe’s numbers aren’t great: .263 average, 10 homers and 31 RBIs. But he missed 14 games with a strained hamstring, and since returning from the disabled list, he is hitting .333 with seven homers and 14 RBIs.
“Batting cleanup doesn’t make any difference to me, as far as my approach,” Hawpe said. “But it is an honor for the manager to bat you cleanup.”
For much of the season, the left-handed Hawpe has hit sixth.
“This moves Hawpe up in the lineup, which I think is appropriate now with the way he has swung the bat,” Hurdle said. “We might make a little tweak with it when we face a left-hander, but we’ll see.”
Here are tonight’s lineups:
Rockies
CF Willy Taveras
1B Todd Helton
LF Matt Holliday
RF Brad Hawpe
3B Garrett Atkins
DH Ryan Spilborghs
2B Jeff Baker
C Chris Iannetta
SS Troy Tulowitzki
Tigers
SS Edgar Renteria
2B Placido Polanco
3B Carlos Guillen
RF Magglio Ordonez
1B Miguel Cabrera
LF Marcus Thames
DH Gary Sheffield
C Ivan Rodriguez
CF Curtis Granderson
Patrick Saunders: 303-954-1428 or psaunders@denverpost.com
