Posted by Bill Baer on Wednesday, February 17, 2010 at 2:42 pm

The phrase “in the best shape of his life” and its variants are a sportswriting cliche these days. Players who had disappointing performances in 2009 will show up to spring training several pounds slimmer, will have adopted a new strenuous workout regimen, and/or will have developed a new pitch or batting stance. This gives fans of all 30 Major League teams hope that this could be the year.

Oftentimes, the “new” version of the player who shows up in camp doesn’t see much return on his extra effort. Former Phillie and current Astro Brett Myers, for instance, lost 35 pounds in an attempt to give himself an edge going into the 2009 season. It didn’t work as he missed 88 games and finished the season with a 4.84 ERA and missed the cut on the team’s NLCS and World Series rosters.

The “best shape of his life” reports are just filler, something for writers to post to their Twitter accounts and their newspaper or magazine’s website so readers don’t develop habits of getting their updates elsewhere.

Sometimes, though, there’s something to it. Before I introduce my theory, in the interest of full disclosure, I’d like to put out there that I’m a die-hard Phillies fan with a blog about them. I’m sure there’s bias in my perception, so feel free to comment below and steer the ship back to center if you feel I’ve gone adrift. Now, as for my theory…

Scott Lauber of the Courier-Post posted a report detailing the activity of the Phillies as pitchers and catchers are set to report in fewer than 21 hours as of this writing. On newcomer Roy Halladay:

Pitchers who are drafted by the Phillies and come up through the farm system speak with dread about the “Philly run,” a grueling conditioning drill that leaves even the fittest athletes gasping for breath.
Last month, Roy Halladay did the “Philly run” voluntarily.

“There’s a reason he’s the best,” reliever Scott Mathieson said as Phillies players began gathering Tuesday amid brisk (low-50s) temperatures at the Carpenter Complex.

Halladay, the Phillies’ new ace, lives nearby in Odessa, Fla., and for the past month, he’s been coming to the ballpark each morning to work out with the Phillies’ trainers and young players who have arrived early to prepare for the season. And his work ethic has left everyone impressed.

Lauber goes on to report that Chase Utley is one of the few positional players who has shown up already.

I read that and conclude that Halladay and Utley can’t help but positively affect the rest of the team by leading by example. There’s no way to quantify the effect of leadership, but there’s something to be said for the culture in the Phillies organization that has developed under the reign of manager Charlie Manuel and GM’s Pat Gillick and Ruben Amaro.

Phillies players have not submitted to the iron fist of a dictator but to the invisible hand of democracy. Unlike former manager Larry Bowa, Manuel has rarely had to resort to clubhouse tirades and the ruining of post-game spreads. Instead, he has let the players do the talking and mostly, the silence has been deafening.

Bobby Abreu, who was a Phillie during the Terry Francona, Larry Bowa, and Charlie Manuel years, can be considered a progenitor of the leaders in the Phillies clubhouse. He wasn’t outspoken, but he showed up to the ballpark every day ready to play regardless of how he felt. As a Phillie, he played in at least 151 games every year, twice appearing in all 162 games. Unfortunately, Abreu’s lack of agility as an outfielder was misinterpreted by fans and some media types as an unwillingness to give 100%.

Then Chase Utley came along. He was noted for his willingness to run out every weak ground ball and infield pop-up. Late broadcaster Harry Kalas once exclaimed, “Chase Utley, you are the man!” when he scored from second on an infield grounder (yes, you read that right). Nary a game goes by where he doesn’t get his uniform dirty diving after ground balls and pop-ups, and he needed to be convinced that taking an odd day off would be beneficial to him in the long run.

Even Jimmy Rollins, who was disciplined by Manuel when he failed to run out a pop-up, has set an example with his leadership by showing up to the ballpark every day ready to play. Like Abreu, he finds his name on the lineup card close to 160 times every season. And like Utley, he’s willing to risk personal health for grounders and pop-ups.

These veteran leaders have established the culture you see now with the Phillies and Roy Halladay only adds to that. I realize it sounds cliche but it does have value.

I look at a team like the Phillies with their leadership, and then I look at their success. Then, I look at a team like the Mets with their lack of leadership, and then I look at their lack of success. Leadership and success are not perfectly inversely correlated, but the trend is not an accident.

Jose Reyes, known more for his celebratory antics than anything he’s accomplished on the field, was being accused by New York media and Mets fans last year for being in a wimp in his recovery from a hamstring injury. Reyes worsened his injury status attempting to come back prematurely to selfishly show everyone that he was a gamer.

Ace Johan Santana appears to spend far too much time working on unique handshakes for all of his teammates, if this video is any indication.

Former closer Billy Wagner insulted former first baseman Carlos Delgado, among others, for not staying in the clubhouse long enough after games for interviews.

The organization never ordered J.J. Putz to take a physical. Then, when his right elbow didn’t feel right, the Mets told Putz to keep quiet about it (link).

Carlos Beltran had knee surgery performed in January without the permission of his team, which owes him $18.5 million in each of 2010 and ‘11.

In 2008, GM Omar Minaya fired Willie Randolph at 3 in the morning after the first game (a win, believe it or not) of a six-game West coast road trip.

Many more examples abound, but I believe my point is made. Leadership is bred from the front office, the manager, and its veteran players. The Phillies have it down to a science, while the Mets have been looking for the secret formula to no avail.

Now, the Phillies are not perfect. They have had their offenders. Brett Myers has had several incidents such as punching his wife while in Boston and yelling at journalist Sam Carchidi. Rollins, mentioned previously, did not run out a fly ball. Cole Hamels was involved in a bar fight in his Minor League days.

However, by and large, these problems are dealt with immediately and do not linger. Myers made a concerted effort to rectify his marital problems (something for which he receives far too little credit). Rollins admitted fault and accepted his punishment from Manuel. He was quoted as saying, “I know better. Just go out there and make sure I don’t do it again. Nothing to get disappointed about. Something you learn from. Don’t do it again.”

There’s also something to be said for the fact that the Phillies’ training staff won the Dick Martin award from Baseball Prospectus and the Mets inspired this Sporcle quiz.

There was a funny episode of Seinfeld in which George Costanza, in an effort to reverse his fortunes, decides to do the exact opposite of what his impulses tell him to do. Until they establish leadership within the organization — which is tough to do with a lame duck general manager — the Mets should do the exact opposite of what they think they should do. If the team tells a player to hide or play through an injury, that player should seek medical help. If Jose Reyes isn’t feeling right and wants to show the fans he’s gritty, he should take the next week off to recuperate.

Leadership may not be quantifiable, but it is undeniable that it has had a noticeable effect on the recent fates of the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies, two organizations heading in opposite directions.