There's a boatload of talent on this team. They played with a lot of heart and won some really exciting games. I haven't had too many objective reasons to have doubted this team, but something has just felt "off" all year. Consistently, all season long, I never really thought they had a chance - and my default predisposition is almost always optimistic.
Now, how a team "feels" to me is useless. That's not the point. The point is that I wasn't alone with this, and it was a lot of people that are usually pretty perceptive. And I'm betting those same people felt the opposite about 2013 from spring training on. The stuff some people call luck between the numbers isn't necessarily blind chance. Philosophy, preparedness, attitude, luck, health, confidence, whatever else, are all part of what make up the numbers.
But even if we can't possibly know how much of an effect they have, it's really hard to see the underwhelming offense across the board as random chance. It could of be, but I think it's more likely that this is an issue with non-playing personnel. Maybe that's Farrell. Maybe it's Chili. Maybe it's someone in a cubical somewhere whose name we don't know.
Luckily, I don't have to figure that out. That's DD's job. A lot of times that means hiring a new manager, even if it doesn't seem fair. At the least, it's a new roll of the dice. Maybe they just need a new voice. Maybe they need a better in-game manager (my personal pick). Maybe they still like Farrell, but they need a new bench coach with some ideas. I honestly don't know.
There were a lot of avoidable errors this season. I'm totally on board with being aggressive on the basepaths, but I had a real problem with their lack of situational awareness. That is a lack of preparation and planning. If I had a horse to bet on for what correctable factor has the biggest effect on a player's "luck", it'd be preparation. That's squarely on management. That *is* management.
These are some exciting young players, but they're young. Farrell's management style seems to work better with veterans. I think they should look for someone who will get the most out of our still developing young core while they're still young. I also wouldn't mind if he knew when it is and isn't prudent to be reckless on the basepaths, or when you just should let your star closer only start fresh innings like he's comfortable with when you have a stacked bullpen full of arms capable of making 1 clutch out. But, I'm not greedy.