Atlanta Braves: Where should Dansby Swanson hit when he returns?

With Dansby  Swanson close to making his return to the Atlanta Braves, you have to wonder if he’ll take back his spot in the lineup.

When Brian Snitker decided to move Ronald Acuna Jr. and Dansby Swanson to the top of the order, the Atlanta Braves offense really took off.

A lot of the talk surrounding that move was about Acuna, but Swanson played just as big of a role in igniting the offense.

We all know Dansby was in the midst of a career-year before injuring his heel against the Royals. An injury that we thought would only keep him out a few days turned into nearly two months.

There is no question the Atlanta Braves need Swanson back, even though Adeiny Hechavarría has filled in great since coming on board.

But if Dansby comes back and hits the way he was before getting injured, it really changes the dynamic of this lineup.

The only question is, will he go back into the two-hole?

Ozzie took over that spot in the lineup once Dansby went down and really caught fire. He went 29-for-72 (.402) in the 16 games after Dansby went on the IL.

The second baseman has cooled off a good bit since then going 7-for-50 (.140) with no multi-hit games over his last 12 games.

Overall this season, Ozzie is hitting .268 from the two-hole in 149 at-bats, .273 at leadoff in 128 at-bats, and .361 in the eight spot in 83 at-bats.

He’s also hitting .287 and .309 in the sixth and seventh spots respectively.

Dansby hit .318 in 22 at-bats from the eight spot to start the season, and .230 in the six spot in 74 at-bats.

From the two-hole, he’s hit .268 in 272 at-bats.

The averages are pretty similar from the two spot, but there is one big reason why I prefer Dansby hitting there over Ozzie.

This may be an unpopular opinion among Atlanta Braves fans, but Ozzie is my least from Brave to watch hit. His approach at the plate infuriates me to no end.

It’s great when he goes up there hacking and is getting hits like he was in that three-week stretch after Dansby went down. But he makes me want to pull my hair out when he pops up the first pitch of an at-bat and is in a slump like he is now.

I’ll take the consistently good at-bats from Dansby in that two-spot.

Plus, it gives Ronald a better chance to steal some more bags when he gets on base. Right now when Acuna gets on he doesn’t have a chance to run because Ozzie is swinging at every pitch.

I know the normal lineup construction is a thing of the past, but Dansby profiles as a better number two-hitter.

I like having Ozzie down in the lineup — 6-8 — where he can do damage and turn the lineup over.

Let’s all just be glad that Dansby is close to coming back. According to Mark Bowman of MLB.com, he could be activated for the game in Coors on Monday.

Either way, let us know where you think Dansby should hit upon his return. And consequently, where does that leave Albies?