Injuries, struggles force Scioscia to alter lineup

CLEVELAND -- Albert Pujols will be out for a while, Howie Kendrick will probably go on the disabled list, Peter Bourjos is still on a rehab assignment for Triple-A Salt Lake and Josh Hamilton is coming off a 2-for-26 homestand, which means Mike Scioscia's lineups will feature several interesting twists -- and probably very little continuity -- for the foreseeable future.

For Friday's matchup against Indians lefty Scott Kazmir, Mike Trout was back in the No. 3 spot after hitting second the previous seven days, Josh Hamilton batted sixth for the first time in eight games, Chris Nelson hit fifth for the second time this season, and Collin Cowgill was in the No. 2 spot for the first time since July 31.

It was the seventh consecutive different lineup Scioscia has used, and there could be more.

Continuity is a difficult thing to attain these days.

"It's been very tough," Scioscia said, "because we're dealing with more unknowns with young players and also good players who are not performing to a level that they can."