One of the most important responsibilities a team coach has is putting together a batting order that will produce runs. Yet all too often these same coaches become so bound to a particular way of thinking that they don’t take advantage of opportunities that might be available to them if they’re willing to think a little bit outside the box.

Let’s start with what is the norm for most teams. The traditional batting order usually looks something like this:

• Leadoff – Fastest girl who can put the ball in play reliably; often a slapper if one is available; tends to hit mostly singles; often called a “table setter”
• Two hitter – Primary job is to move the leadoff along when she gets on base, either by hitting a single, bunting, or hitting behind the runner; mostly puts the ball in play on the ground
• Three hitter – Best all-around hitter on the team; can hit for power, hit for average, doesn’t strike out much; her job is to bring the table setters in
• Cleanup – Your most powerful hitter, the girl who is a threat to go yard any time she steps up to the plate; not too worried about average so it’s ok if she strikes out a lot as long as she hits those deep balls
• Five hitter – Second-best all-around hitter on the team; she’d be the three hitter if three wasn’t there; maybe has a little lower average or slugging percentage than three but still a huge threat at the plate
• Six hitter – She’s ok and you hope to get her on base but you also know it’s not as likely; mostly a singles hitter, might be good at drawing walks
• Seven hitter – Great defensive player
• Eight hitter – Shows flashes of being good but not strong enough to make the top five; probably there to drive in six and/or seven in case either one is fortunate enough to get on base
• Nine hitter – Second base candidate for leadoff; while she thinks you put her there because you think she’s bad, you’re actually hoping she gets on base so the top of the lineup can drive her in; generally fast, could be a developing slapper; OR, your worst hitter who you’re trying to limit in how many times she comes to the plate

That’s a lineup that has worked for many teams for decades, and certainly a valid approach. But it’s not the only one.

One of the determining factors should be your personnel, i.e., your players and how they hit. A smart coach will look at who he/she has available and will try to take the best advantage of them regardless of what the “experts” say.

And in doing so, he/she may just catch the more traditional-thinking coaches off guard as they call pitches based on their assumptions. Here are a couple of examples.

More power at the top

Instead of opening with a couple of table setters, try taking a traditional five hitter and batting her at leadoff. She hits for average so will likely get on base, and since she also hits for power she could lead off the game with a double or triple.

That way you already have a runner in scoring position after one batter and have three outs to bring her in. Statistically you’re more likely to score in that situation than if you get a runner on first and sacrifice her to second. You also deflate the opposing team (and especially their pitcher) psychologically by opening with a big hit.

Then put your traditional three hitter in the two spot. A second big hit in a row scores the first one and probably leaves this hitter in scoring position as well.

Worst case you have two runners on base with no outs, with one or both already in scoring position. Then put your cleanup hitter in the three slot.

If she goes yard you have three runs before you have any outs, and even if she just hits a deep fly ball that’s caught you score one and probably advance the other runner to second or third where you still have two outs to bring her in. Worst case she strikes out but you still have two more outs to score at least one run.

From there, you can bunch your traditional one, two, and nine hitters to see if you can scratch a couple more runs together. You might want to put two in the four spot so that the traditional four, if she gets on base, isn’t in the way of your speedsters.

With this lineup you maximize the number of at-bats your best hitters get while minimizing the at-bats of your weakest hitters. It does create a potential hitter desert at the bottom of the lineup so you have to hope the top does its job so you’re not depending on the bottom to win a close game.

But hey, no risk, no reward.

Focus on speed

What if you don’t have any (or at least not many) big hitters? In that case you might want to bunch your fastest players (who can hit) at the top and try to create havoc and errors with aggressive baserunning.

Your leadoff hitter would be the same as a traditional lineup. But then bring the traditional nine up to the two slot, and follow her with another speedster in the three slot.

With three girls who can get on base with a slight bobble you are putting a lot of pressure on the defense to perform. And as we’ve all seen, errors often happen in bunches.

Force one bad throw that results in an extra base or two, then keep applying the pressure, and you may get another, or a fielding error as the fielder tries to rush her play on the ball. You could easily end up with a run or two without the ball leaving the infield.

You could also end up with demoralized opponents, especially if the opposing coach has to stop the game to yell at his/her players about making plays.

After those first three, put in whoever is closest to a traditional three (great power, great average) to see if you can clear whoever is left off the bases. You can then start again with speed, or if you have a traditional cleanup hitter put her in there before going back to the speed game.

The 5-4 lineup

There is probably a better name for this one but this is what I call it.

Basically what you’re doing is structuring the lineup so the first five hitters follow the tradition lineup. But then then next four act like a second top of the lineup.

In other words, your six hitter would probably be your traditional nine – the girl who would be leadoff if you didn’t have your one hitter. The seven hitter will be a traditional six – decent hitter but not good enough to crack the top five.

The eight hitter would be the same, a budding traditional three or five. Then the nine spot would be that great defensive player. You’re basically willing to take the out, or maybe that’s a good spot for the designated player to add one more decent bat to the lineup.

The turtle parade

This one is definitely driven by your personnel. And as you can probably guess by the name, while your team can hit pretty well it’s not exactly blessed with speed.

In this case I’d say take your fastest player who can get on base regularly and put her in the leadoff spot. She may not be all that fast, but compared to the others she’s a rabbit so give her the opportunity to run.

From there, if everyone is about 4 seconds or more down to first, base your lineup on batting averages – highest in the two spot, second highest in the three spot, etc. Figure you’re going to mostly be running station-to-station, so give the most reliable hitters the most at-bats.

Just be sure not to put the slowest turtle in the nine spot, because if she gets on base your only girl with any speed at all is going to be stuck behind her.

Be creative

Those are just a few options. A lot of what you can or should do will depend on who you have on your team and how consistent they are.

One other thing to keep in mind is how they handle things psychologically. I can tell you from personal experience I was a good three or five hitter, but for whatever reason struggled at four.

I’ve also coached girls who could hit .750 from the seven spot, but put them at one or two and they folded like a cheap card table. When weighing your options be sure to account for those factors.

With a little creativity, however, and a willingness to buck the norms (even when the parents don’t get it) you can find a lineup that helps you produce more runs and win more ballgames. And look like an offensive guru in the process.