This is probably a dumb question, but I'm uncertain what "leadership" is supposed to impact or resolve on the team. A hitter is supposed to hit the ball; a fielder is supposed to concentrate and field the ball; a pitcher is supposed to pitch. What are we wanting leadership to improve in those areas, and how does that play between player versus manager/coaches?
Is player-leadership going to add velocity and life to Lester's, Q's, Hendricks's, Hamels', Strop's, and Kimbrel's fastballs? Would better leadership have given Edwards command and composure? Would leadership have given Mike Montgomery's stuff more spin, and reduced his HR's-allowed? Theo has prioritized assembling a really old, worn pitching staff with guys on the variably-steep decline-side of their careers. Would better player-leadership have any impact there? And the Professor, super tough and over-achiever Lester, and crafty veteran Hamels, their leadership is lacking?
Would better player-leadership have helped Bote to make fewer errors, and have prevented his upper-body buildup from having cost a little bit of defensive flexibility? If we had not only Heyward and Descalso but also had a Ross and Fowler providing better leadership, would that cause Almora to hit better, Baez to improve his plate discipline, Contreras to pitch-frame better, and Happ and Schwarber to have better command of the upper half of the strike zone? Would better leadership make our assembly of baserunners not quite so pokey?
I guess I'm kinda puzzled as to how much leadership is capable of impacting performance. I get that there can be some indirects. Maybe a better culture has guys more attentive and focused defensively, so that a Rizzo never forgets how many outs there are. Maybe a better culture has guys talking and thinking baseball more, watching more film, getting to bed sooner, and reducing affairs and alcoholism, and somehow they play better as a result?
I guess I just don't really understand how much direct or indirect impact player leadership will have on baseball performance, in a game where each pitch is made by an individual pitcher; each at-bat is individual; and each defensive play is individually executed.