Star-spangled

Yankees skipper Joe Torre can count on at least one bit of fun each day: filling out his batting order. The top eight hitters—three lefties, three righties and two switch-hitters—are a manager's dream, plus there's speed at the top and power through the lower third. The No. 8 hitter could be 106-RBI man Hideki Matsui or Bernie Williams, who hit cleanup last year, or Jorge Posada, who was third in the MVP vote. New York also may find an upgrade over Enrique Wilson and Miguel Cairo at second base; one National League G.M. says the Yankees could still pry third baseman Adrian Beltre from the Dodgers and play him at second. In 2003 New York outscored its opponents by a greater margin than any other AL team and finished second in on-base percentage. This year the Yanks should get runners aboard even more often; Jason Giambi, Posada, Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter ranked among the AL's top 10 in OBP last season, and Gary Sheffield was sixth in the NL.

2003 STATISTICS

1ST

KENNY LOFTON
CENTERFIELD
Bats left
.296
97 runs
30 SBs

2ND

DEREK JETER
SHORTSTOP
Bats right
.324
10 HRs
87 runs

3RD

ALEX RODRIGUEZ
THIRD BASE
Bats right
.298
47 HRs
118 RBIs

4TH

JASON GIAMBI
FIRST BASE
Bats left
.250
41 HRs
107 RBIs