New York Mets Made Good Coaching Hire in Chip Hale

The Mets made it easy for anyone to savage them this offseason. They were not proactive in improving the team talentwise.

With that said, they added quality baseball people in the organization. That’s something that should not be overlooked.

They hired Chip Hale, Bob Melvin, Wally Backman, Dave Jauss, and Terry Collins to work with the players. The organization believes good coaching helps players get better.

Hale was highly recommended from many people in the baseball industry. Everyone thinks he will be a manager eventually.

The former Diamondbacks third base coach offers value to the team. He works well in getting the most out of young players. He knows base-running. He can work with the players on defense.

It's something this organization needed after the awful play all season last year.

The Mets are trying to incorporate many young players on the team this season.  Daniel Murphy, Fernando Martinez, Ruben Tejada and eventually Ike Davis are going to rely on Hale to work with them in playing the game the way it should be.

Hale had success with many of the Diamondbacks young players these last few years. The Mets are hoping he has that same impact.

The Amazins were sloppy when it came to base-running and defense.

That's where Hale can teach them based on his experience as a player. As a Twins player, he learned a lot under Tom Kelly. It should come in handy.

So far, the players are learning how to play defense. It will take time.

The team is doing better when it comes to being on the base paths. The players know how to take the extra bases, and they are not getting themselves out.

The Mets are learning how to be aggressive too. We saw that on Opening Day.

When Jason Bay hit the ball, he did not settle for the double. He settled for a triple and it was good for enough for him to score.

In tonight's game, Bay was on base in the fourth inning. Jeff Francoeur hit a single and Bay ran home. It's clear if Hale feels the runner can go home, he won't hesitate.

He also has the Mets doing a suicide squeeze on Opening Day, but that did not work out.

It's refreshing to see this team go for it rather than sit back and hope something happens.

That's what good teams do.

Look for Hale to get his players to work hard when it comes to playing the game right. This team will not be outworked or overmatched. Hale is known to have his guys prepared.

Third base coach is considered the hardest job of a baseball coach. Second-guessers get on the coach if he does not know what he is doing.

Often times, the coach needs to make a lot of decisions when runners are on-base. A manager can only do so much from the bench.

It comes down to vision, instinct, and intelligence.

So far, the Mets have benefit well under Hale's calls. Now, he has to caution on the side of error. There's going to be time where he needs to know when to stop his runners.

He gives his players leeway to score, but there has to be some sense to it.

One figures Hale knows what he’s doing.

Expect the team to get better on defense, eventually. It's hard to see now, based on the last two games, but it takes time for players to learn.

It's no different than any of us learning a new concept in life. It's the feeling we had when we were in school.

It comes down to repetition. The hope is that this team understands quickly.

Based on how these guys play the game, it may take awhile.

This team has not had a quality third base coach since Manny Acta left to manage the Nationals. Acta did a fine job of working with players. Guys listened to him well.

It's one reason why the organization worked diligently in getting a quality third base coach this offseason.

It's good to see the organization take that approach. Jerry Manuel hired his buddies in his coaching staff. It didn't work out.

How many times did the public groan every time a mistake was made?

This is going to be a different scenario.

They got this one right.

For the Mets sake, let's hope Hale does not pull an Acta next season. These players could use several years of Hale's teaching if tonight's game was any indication.

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