We tell you who to sit and who to start in setting your hitting line-ups each week. For the top hitters for the week, we focus on questionable hitters that may or may not normally start for you that have favorable schedules this week. We won't bother listing hitters like Pujols, Hanley, or A-Rod in this article, because you always start them, regardless of schedule. Likewise, we won't list lousy hitters in the bottom section, because you'd obviously bench a hitter like David Eckstein playing in PETCO all week without our having to tell you to do so. For the bottom hitters, we focus on the average and better than average (but not star) hitters that you would normally start but have poor schedules this week. Top platoon starts are mostly RHBs playing many LHPs in the upcoming week. Bottom platoon starts are mostly LHBs facing a heavy LHP schedule. Top SB starts play against teams that allow many SBs, and vice versa.

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Top Hitting Starts (#1 being the best)

1. Ryan Raburn 2B/OF DET (3 KC, 4 @TOR) The red-hot Raburn's lease on the lineup continues with Carlos Guillen on the DL and Magglio Ordonez's continuing injury. Seven games this week and the key will be the road trip against the Jays.
2. Danny Valencia 3B MIN (4 @TEX, 3 @SEA) Road games, 'tis true. But Valencia batted .350 the last month coming into Sunday's game and knocked his second dinger if he season. More importantly he's amassed 100 at-bats over the same period and looks to be full time with Nick Punto hitting the DL.

Top Platoon Starts (#1 being the best) 

1. Rod Barajas C LAD (3 @MIL, 3 @COL) The newest Dodger must wait a week to try out his new digs in Chavez Ravine, but until then he gives his owners the always-friendly, beer-league road trip with a mixed six pack of Coors and Miller (where he has hit .333)
2. John Jay OF STL (3 @PIT, 4 @WAS) Jay has a mean reverse split against lefties (.438/.486/.531), so the three southpaws don't worry us in the least. Seven winnable games for the Cardinal who need a good week.
3. Ryan Doumit C/OF PIT (3 STL, 3 @MIL) Doumit has played fairly regularly since losing his starting catching gig. The Bucs get some juicy matches against Milwaukee later in the week. He's still catcher eligible, so as long as the pirates still run him out there, this move might help the injury prone catcher.

Top Stolen Base Starts (#1 being the best)

1. Luis Durango OF SDG (4 @CHC, 3 @MIL) With Tony Gwynn on the shelf, Durango gets the call from Portland where he has 35 steals in 97 games.
2. Michael Bourn OF HOU (4 PHI, 3 @SDG) Bourn didn't have a great week, but he still has 12 nabs in 30 games since the All-Star break. Not hitting a lick, but starting to put the ball on the ground and letting his legs work.  

Bottom Hitting Starts (#1 being the worst)

1. Manny Ramirez OF LAD (3 @MIL, 3 @COL) Good parks for Manny, but he was almost certainly activated early for the purpose of running him through waivers. The Rays have evidently asked about him, so NL-Only's should avoid Manny if they have alternatives.
2. Rafael Furcal SS LAD (3 @MIL, 3 @COL) Furcal had a cortisone shot and it has not, as yet, taken effect. Jamey Carroll probably draws the lion's share of the work
3. Tyler Colvin OF CHC (3 @WSN, 3 @CIN) If the Quade administration has any sense, they won't be teaching the rookie a new position at the major league level on the road in the last quarter of the season, including a tough series against the division leaders. But we fear they will.
4. Chris Young OF ARI (3 @SDG, 3 @SFG) The snake sit by the seaside sifting "San's" as in the tough pitching and parks of the San Diego and San Francisco. Young has been a horse, but he comes into this difficult stretch hitless in his last three.

Bottom Platoon Starts (#1 being the worst)

1. Matt LaPorta OF/1B CLE (3 OAK, 3 KC) We don't want you to forget Pronk... except this week. Four righties including the hit-stingy Cahill and Zack Greinke.
2. Cody Ross OF SFG (3 CIN, 3 ARI) No one, including the Giants seems to know what Ross' role will be next to the Bay. The Giants evidently expected the Marlins to recall Ross from waivers and instead let the Giants have him. Ross is a great fit for the Giants had they not already gotten Jose Guillen. 

 Bottom Stolen Base Starts (#1 being the worst)

1. Everth Cabrera SS SDG (4 @CHC, 3 @MIL) The Padre's yielded to the inevitable, sending him to Portland. Cabrera was not going to get on track playing sometime after after the acquisition of Miguel Tejada. So they swapped him out for Luis Durango who take the place of the injured Tony Gwynn in the outfield.
2. Julio Borbon OF TEX (4 MIN, 3 OAK) The speedster will have a tough time getting steals against Mauer and Suzuki. Ditto for Elvis Andrus.