He’s been asked to bat leadoff occasionally in several different seasons. And in doing that, he’s hit even better than his career averages. Here are Rizzo’s lines batting leadoff:
2017: 14 games, 59 PA, .300/.373/.680, five home runs
2018: 31 games, 138 PA, 328/.428/.552, six home runs
2019: 12 games, 46 PA, .410/.500/.667, three home runsThose numbers are all far better than his career norms, and with 57 games there and 243 plate appearances, it’s not really a small sample size anymore. Overall in those 243 plate appearances: .337/.428/.605 with 14 home runs.