2021 was a disappointing season for the New York Mets. The pitching staff was beset with injuries. Jacob deGrom and Carlos Carrasco, the two pitchers penciled in as 1 and 2 in the Mets' rotation, made only 27 combined starts. That was only the tip of the injury iceberg that sunk the Mets'season — all told, 42 starters and relievers toed the rubber for the Mets last year. That was not a recipe for success.
For all of that, however, what bothered me most personally about last season was the offense. It looked like a strength heading into the year, but the Mets finished the season dead last among National League teams in hits and runs scored. Had they hit as expected, the team might well have competed for a playoff spot until the end of the season. Instead, they fell out of the race before September began.
Early offensive struggles led to the decision on May 4 to replace hitting coach Chili Davis and his assistant Tom Slater with Hugh Quattlebaum and Kevin Howard. Both new coaches were originally hired by the Mets for very different jobs. Quattlebaum was initially employed as a minor league director of hitting development, while Howard was brought on as director of player development. It was unusual for a major league team to make such a drastic move with the season well underway.
Reportedly, the front office was very dissatisfied with Davis' aversion to the increased use of analytics. The hitters definitely weren't producing when Chili was handed a pink slip. Francisco Lindor struggled mightily, hitting .182/.297/.234 in March and April. Jeff McNeil slashed .203/.299/.339 during that same period. Dom Smith limped along at .222/.250/.333, while Michael Conforto delivered a weak .211/.325/.324 batting line.
In hindsight, the Mets would have been better advised to have waited until after the year to make such a drastic change, even if they weren't happy with Davis' approach. The offense never turned around when Quattlebaum and Howard took over. It wasn't for lack of data. Reportedly, Mets players were overloaded with details by the analytics team afterward. The needle swung drastically from too little use of data to information overload. Injuries played a part in the struggles, of course, but the Mets never found a way to put up offensive numbers even close to their potential, even when their hitters regained health.
It's easy to oversimplify a story like this and declare that the "old ways" are best. However, the problem wasn't the use of analytics — it was the failure to properly integrate the information in a manner that allowed the players to utilize it for success. Contrast this with the Mets' success by using data to position their fielders in a way that dramatically improved their defensive numbers last season.
ความคิดเห็น
แสดงความคิดเห็น