The many possibilities of a Yankees batting order in 2018

Meat of the order

Batting second, I like Hicks because he’s a switch-hitter, which is an enormous advantage later in games when opposing managers tend to matchup shooters according to handedness.

Hicks, who at 28 is just now entering the prime of his career, is even-keeled when it comes to strikeouts vs. walks (67:51 ratio in ’17). He can also drive the ball to both gaps and is an incredible baserunner that will allow for many hit and run situations.

Judge belongs in the three-hole. This is the spot where your best hitter typically resides. Before you yell at me that Judge isn’t the Yankees’ “best hitter,” just because of his strikeout totals; beware, much more than K’s needs to be evaluated.

We already know about his prodigious power, the high-walk totals and stellar OBP and slugging percentage. But what about Judge’s 340 total bases last season? His 5.8 adjusted batting wins, .781 offensive win percentage or 79 extra base hits? I could go on, or you could just familiarize yourself with some of Judge’s other ’17 out of this world stats.

Judge quite often found himself in the No. 2 slot in Joe Girardi’s offense; however, the primary job of this position in the lineup has always been to advance a runner by hitting the ball to the other side (a la Derek Jeter). Though Judge has shown extraordinary opposite field power, it’s still power. The man is no inside-out slap hitter.

The old baseball adage that you want your best hitters to get up to the plate more often than your weaker hitters still hold true, but my goal would be to stretch out the power bats from 1-through-9 — not bunch them up at the very top.

Besides, with Giancarlo Stanton as your cleanup hitter, who’s pitching around Judge? No one, just like you’re not working around Stanton, to get to Sanchez.

Bumping down El Gary a peg should alleviate some pressure on his offensive efforts, that hopefully translate to more of a focus behind the dish. Other than that directive, there isn’t a whole lot to ask from Stanton and Sanchez, except, do what you do best.