Mets called out for lack of leadership by Ed Kranepool: Is he right?

The New York Mets have been the biggest disappointment of the 2023 season. After breaking the record as the highest payroll in all of baseball, the team failed to meet expectations, to what former Met Ed Kranepool called a lack of leadership in the team's clubhouse.

Ed Kranepool on SNY on the 2023 Mets: "There’s nobody out here leading this ballclub. There’s a lot of guys out there playing for themselves right now."
— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) July 28, 2023

From time to time, the roster has lacked energy and aggressiveness on the field, something that was not the case last season. But in reality, is the lack of a supposed leader the reason for his debacle?

The statement of the former Mets player Ed Kranepool lacks any foundation

The Mets team may not be showing as good harmony in the clubhouse as in 2022, but the lack of a leader should not be the reason for this underperforming. Instead, the Mets' 2023 roster is virtually identical to last season's when the team reached 101 wins, so the rationale that the problem is leadership doesn't make sense.

Likewise, since the alleged problems in the clubhouse under the command of Luis Rojas in 2021, the organization was interested in improving the relationship between coaches and players, which partly encouraged the hiring of Buck Showalter. And this improvement was quickly evident in the energy and enthusiasm of the team last season.

Similarly, within the player staff, despite not having a captain, various figures have a responsible approach to the press, assuming the blame for what happened and showing a hopeful and positive attitude. Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso, and Brandon Nimmo are seen as personalities who try to lead and improve the spirit of the team at all times.

The reason for the Mets' debacle has nothing to do with problems in the clubhouse and a lack of team leadership. Possibly soon, we will have more information to understand what has happened with this disappointing 2023 season. But if we can assure one thing, it is that the pressure of being on the highest payroll in baseball and the expected expectations about the team created additional pressure that was intensified from day one by the New York City press.