Juan Lagares to start in center field again for Mets in Game 4
New York Mets outfielder Juan Lagares will bat eighth and play center field Tuesday for Game 4 of the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
This means that Michael Conforto and Michael Cuddyer will be out of the lineup once again. Having Lagares in center allows Yoenis Cespedes to move back to left field with Curtis Granderson in right, the optimal spots for the Mets defensively.
To add to that, Lagares is much better against left-handed pitchers than he is righties. He finished the regular season with a 29.0 hard-hit rate over 132 plate appearances to go with a 21.2 strikeout rate. Cuddyer struggled at the plate and in the field this year, and Conforto is a left-handed batter, so Lagares may have even been the choice without his plus defense.
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