Danny has been struggling in his new spot in the order.
But Uggla, who had hit second all season, has struggled in those three games, going 3-for-13 with no RBI.
Manager Fredi Gonzalez said he wasn't worried that Uggla might not see as many hittable pitches batting fifth as he does batting second between Hanley Ramirez and Miguel Cabrera.
"I think he'll be fine there,'' Gonzalez said. "He'll drive in some big runs for us.''
When a hitter is sandwiched between Ramirez and Cabrera he will no doubt see better pitches to hit than he will being further down in the lineup. That almost goes without saying, but I'm sure Danny will adjust and do fine in the five hole.
But that isn't the part of the story that interested me the most, it was this and it is not Uggla getting a day off.
"Just give him a day off,'' Gonzalez said, bristling mildly when asked about the move. "No mental break. Write the reason you want. I'm just giving him off.''
The interesting part of this is that up to now, Fredi has been very compliant with the media almost to a fault. It's good to see him stand up for himself when challenged. I'm, of course, not suggesting that he should shut the media out. But he is the manager and if he decides to give a player a day off, that's his prerogative and he shouldn't have to endure being grilled to explain it in detail. Especially when there are probably no details to explain. Now, if Uggla was being removed as the starting second baseman for an extended period of time, that's a different story. In that case, a more detailed explanation would be warranted.