Giants' Brandon Belt: Dropped to seventh in batting order

Belt was dropped to seventh in the batting order Wednesday, going 0-for-3 with a walk in a loss to the Dodgers.

Analysis:

Belt has cooled off at the plate in the second half of August (.231, no homers and two RBI over last 10 games) after hitting three homers through the first 10 games of the month. Manager Bruce Bochy may have moved him down the order in an effort to take the pressure off his slugging first baseman, or it may have simply been a matchup play with a left-hander on the mound. Either way, Belt is one of several Giants whose cold bats have resulted in a 2-8 record over the club's last 10 games. Batting lower in the order (especially for an on-base machine like Belt) will result in fewer scoring opportunities. Thursday's series finale against the Dodgers will feature right-hander Ross Stripling, so we'll see if Belt's lineup movement was temporary or not.