Team Leaders

[rickh150]

Often talked about in positive terms from 2008-2011, team leaders were evident. In 2008, Cameron, Kendall, CC, Durham, and Torres come to mind. In 2011, Fielder was the team sheriff and leader, along with backup veterans.

In 2014, the lack of veteran leadership or outspoken leadership was debated and criticized.

This year, although not talked about much, big guys like Aguilar and Thames seem to have the respect of many. They play hard, celebrate, seem highly social and involved with their teammates, and get rightly upset when things go bad.

If I had to pick two captains this year, those would be the two. Braun and Garza are there too, but more on the fringe.

[adambr2]

Garza doesn't strike me as a leader at all. I've never seen any leadership qualities about him beyond being a veteran. In fact it seems like the opposite to me. Leaders don't refuse to go to the pen and go home after being demoted.

 

Braun I guess may be a little more of a leader by default but a rather quiet one who probably doesn't have the respect of all his teammates even if they won't say it out loud.

 

Thames is not talked about much? Ha, I don't know about that, the man still has an OPS of over 1.000 and is probably our MVP. I agree he's probably going to end up as a team leader type if he's not yet.

 

I think Aguilar seems well liked but I'm not sure there's really a leader there.

[Oxy]

It's probably a bit over-rated for a game like baseball. Today, Zach Davies was clearly the team leader.

[adambr2]

It's probably a bit over-rated for a game like baseball. Today, Zach Davies was clearly the team leader.

 

I agree with you. Baseball is mostly a game of individual performances. Chemistry is necessary at times between a pitcher and catcher, and fielders should know what their responsibilities are as well as the guys around them, but I don't know how much either of those has to do with leadership. It's not like youngster Santana is going to come up to bat and try harder to hit a HR because of a passionate speech Thames gave him.

 

Leadership in baseball is necessary to the extent that if Villar gets thrown out trying to steal 3rd with 2 outs twice in a week, someone needs to tell him to cut it out, probably the manager. But that's about it.

[jerichoholicninja]

My eyes see zero leaders on this team. Braun is probably the most "leaderish" due to his talent and veteranship but his personality doesn't seem like a guy that you look to when you need someone to take charge. I can see Thames getting there eventually but he's basically a rookie.

[BeerFan]

Although not a player id say Counsell is a pretty good leader for this team. I never realized how rough we had it back in the Macha days.

 

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[pacopete4]

None of us really know because we are not in the locker room with these guys. No matter who it is, the chemistry seems legit with this group. Lots of energy and they rebound very well together.

[CheezWizHed]

It's probably a bit over-rated for a game like baseball. Today, Zach Davies was clearly the team leader.

 

I agree with you. Baseball is mostly a game of individual performances. Chemistry is necessary at times between a pitcher and catcher, and fielders should know what their responsibilities are as well as the guys around them, but I don't know how much either of those has to do with leadership. It's not like youngster Santana is going to come up to bat and try harder to hit a HR because of a passionate speech Thames gave him.

 

Leadership in baseball is necessary to the extent that if Villar gets thrown out trying to steal 3rd with 2 outs twice in a week, someone needs to tell him to cut it out, probably the manager. But that's about it.

 

I'd disagree with this. Leadership in baseball is very different than in football or basketball. But its still necessary.

 

You have 30+ guys (over the course of a season) that play 162 games, travel with each other, practice together, etc... You still need leaders in the team to keep guys pushing and giving their best. The season is a grind and good leaders are there to make sure the each individual is still giving their all. I think if you look at each WS team, you are going to find certain people that are leaders of the clubhouse. People don't give their best in a divided clubhouse.

[NYChez]

If you have 25 team-first players, it lessens the need for strong leaders. Perhaps the lack of a strong leader is a reason Cravy hasn't been brought up. There may not be a mechanism is place to handle a perceived me-first guy.

[adambr2]

It's probably a bit over-rated for a game like baseball. Today, Zach Davies was clearly the team leader.

 

I agree with you. Baseball is mostly a game of individual performances. Chemistry is necessary at times between a pitcher and catcher, and fielders should know what their responsibilities are as well as the guys around them, but I don't know how much either of those has to do with leadership. It's not like youngster Santana is going to come up to bat and try harder to hit a HR because of a passionate speech Thames gave him.

 

Leadership in baseball is necessary to the extent that if Villar gets thrown out trying to steal 3rd with 2 outs twice in a week, someone needs to tell him to cut it out, probably the manager. But that's about it.

 

I'd disagree with this. Leadership in baseball is very different than in football or basketball. But its still necessary.

 

You have 30+ guys (over the course of a season) that play 162 games, travel with each other, practice together, etc... You still need leaders in the team to keep guys pushing and giving their best. The season is a grind and good leaders are there to make sure the each individual is still giving their all. I think if you look at each WS team, you are going to find certain people that are leaders of the clubhouse. People don't give their best in a divided clubhouse.

 

But that's about the extent of leadership in baseball. You need a leader to make sure your guys are playing hard for 162 games. That's about it. It's a game of individual performances .

[CheezWizHed]

It's funny that you say "that's about it" as if it's nothing or easy. Staying mentally focused and sharp for 162 games is not a simple thing. Lots of things can energize or drain energy from a team.

 

When a player is struggling through a drought or having problems with another player, its really easy to let those issues get into your head and ruin your performance.

 

Conversely, having a light-hearted club house and a place where people feel comfortable goes a long way to energizing a team. I think of Mike Cameron and the untuckem' days as probably the best Brewer example of a team that cheered each other on and had a lot of fun at the ball park. It was evident in their play everyday.

 

And no, a team of 25 team-centric guys does not make this happen automatically. People naturally search for leadership.

 

No, they don't need everyone on the exact same page as running a Packer sweep left or Packer sweep right. But that doesn't mean baseball doesn't require leadership or team play.

[A Swing and A Drive]

I agree with Cheez-Wiz on this.

 

Having a loose, yet focused clubhouse is a key for a winning team. In any business, people perform better if they are enjoying themselves, IMO.

 

Ask the "3-times this decade" WS champs the San Francisco Giants how important a leader like Hunter Pence is to the team?

 

I think Counsell will prove to be a great manager over time.

 

Side note: I noticed the Brewers are 6-3 on Sundays so far this year. I certainly don't miss Ned Yost's old "Sunday Lineups" where he'd give all our top hitters the day off every Sunday for some weird reason and our lineup would be completely terrible. Don't remember too many W's on Sundays. lol

[TURBO]

Garza is one of the last guys on this team I would peg for a leader after his nonsense last season.

 

I don't know how his name could possibly surface as a leader.

[WV Brew]

Whenever this topic comes up:

 

Cut back to George attempting to explain his cowardly actions to Robin, her mother, Eric and a fireman from the back of the ambulance at the party.

 

GEORGE (voice is hoarse from screaming): I...was trying to lead the way. We needed a leader! Someone to lead the way to safety.

 

ROBIN: But you yelled "get out of my way"!

 

GEORGE: Because! Because, as the leader...if I die...then all hope is lost! Who would lead? The clown? Instead of castigating me, you should all be thanking me. What kind of a topsy-turvy world do we live in, where heroes are cast as villains? Brave men as cowards?

 

ROBIN: But I saw you push the women and children out of the way in a mad panic! I saw you knock them down! And when you ran out, you left everyone behind!

 

GEORGE: Seemingly. Seemingly, to the untrained eye, I can fully understand how you got that impression. What looked like pushing...what looked like knocking down...was a safety precaution! In a fire, you stay close to the ground, am I right? And when I ran out that door, I was not leaving anyone behind! Oh, quite the contrary! I risked my life making sure that exit was clear. Any other questions?

[rickh150]

Garza is one of the last guys on this team I would peg for a leader after his nonsense last season.

 

 

I don't know how his name could possibly surface as a leader.

 

I'll take that one back....

[BeerFan]

Counsell may not be a player, but he seems to be a pretty good leader for this team. Hes much better than some of the managers weve endured over the last decade

 

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