Phillies: Traditional vs. analytical tug-of-war in MLB
By Tal Venada
Head versus heart:
When I pored over fans’ comments, they were heavy with disappointment and unhappiness. They demanded that the GM and the manager have to go, and the constant lineup changes were the reason for the organization’s failure at the MLB level. Sound familiar?
According to a thread on 4chan.org, the “fire this man now” theme screamed in post after post. But if your guess is Gabe Kapler and the hometown nine, you’d be wrong. No, the venom was for Dave Roberts of the Dodgers because consecutive NL pennants are unacceptable.
A major point of contention was not having a set lineup due to the execs dictating the batting order with analytics. In other words, the Los Angeles faithful believe their franchise needs to do things the traditional way. As for NL runs, the Dodgers were first with 804.
Different MLB lineups:
- Most: Dodgers with 155.
- Least: Braves with 105.
- NL: Dodgers with 155 (Phillies with 138 for 7th).
- AL: Blue Jays with 154.
- East: Blue Jays with 154 (Phillies with 138 for 5th).
- MLB: Dodgers with 155 (Phillies with 138 for 15th).
Many locals are positive a set batting order would replace the analytical experiment of having different lineups as if the red pinstripes alone did this. However, they are following the current trend, and other teams are as well.
Keep in mind, Dodgers players were against hiring Kapler because the front office would be too close to the dugout. But those stars now believe Roberts received his marching orders from the higher-ups. Meanwhile, switching the name Roberts in the linked thread with Kapler would be mostly seamless.