Building the perfect Dodgers lineup for 2021 season

Batting Seventh: AJ Pollock, LF

Sorry, Chris Taylor. We’re giving the Dodgers AJ Pollock every day.

This is a difficult decision to render, but we believe that after a bizarre 60-game season that didn’t really give us a fair assessment of any of the team’s fringe pieces (other than potentially Smith behind the plate), we’d still like to see the kid at second base (we’re getting to it).

That would put AJ Pollock in left field on a daily basis, with Chris Taylor reserved for the fourth outfielder spot and semi-everyday work as a roving infield option. 90-100 games is enough of a promise for Taylor at this point.

Pollock’s power/speed combination returned in 2020 after a depressing and injury-marred 2019 (that still featured a .266 average and 15 bombs). This time around, the ex-Diamondback smashed 16 homers in just 55 games, and though he tailed off by the time the postseason rolled around, he’s still LA’s highest-upside play here.

That’s the best part about Taylor’s existence, too. He’s willing to fight, and he can be inserted just about anywhere. Though he doesn’t appear in our “ideal lineup” (just a personal preference!), he’ll be in the actual lineup more often than not.