Phillies drop 1B Ryan Howard down to No. 7 spot in order
Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg bumped struggling first baseman Ryan Howard down to seventh in the batting order for Thursday's contest against the Nationals. Howard batted cleanup in his first seven games with the Phillies before receiving the night off on Wednesday.
Howard mired in a 4-for-27 slump with three doubles, 10 strikeouts and no walks in seven games. It will be the first time he'll hit seventh in the order since April 21, 2006, per MLB.com.
"I talked to him this afternoon and just told him, 'Hey, it's creating a lineup, trying to win the baseball game,'" Sandberg said. "And so [I told him], 'In the meantime, just keep working.' Howie's doing everything that's asked on the defensive side of the ball, and the offensive side of the ball. If he could get hot, then I'd have some flexibility and choices in the lineup, so that would be the best scenario."
