Chemistry is a science that has repeated results when different compounds are combined or broken a part. It is defined as the branch of science that deals with the identification of the substances of which matter is composed; the investigation of their properties and the ways in which they interact, combine, and change; and the use of these processes to form new substances.
Chemistry in baseball is different.
Joe Maddon defends his overmanaging moves in the Pittsburgh series as helping to define his team's chemistry.
“It looks like a negative when you look at it on a piece of paper,
but actually among the group, it can turn out to be a positive
situation,” Maddon said Thursday morning according to ESPNChicago. “That’s what it’s kind of
grown into. I love it. I’ve been involved in it before. I’ve been
involved it in successfully before.”
Maddon is talking about team
chemistry. He believes it can grow when the entire roster is being
utilized. Yes, guys are playing out of position while pitchers like Travis Wood are pinch-hitting, and in Wednesday’s case, pinch-running, but it's bringing the group together in Maddon’s estimation.
“I
can’t tell you how alive that bench is in the latter part of our
games,” he said. “I love it. They know they can be called upon. It’s a
wonderful vibe we have to nurture and keep going.”
"Vibe" is defined as a person's emotional state or the atmosphere of a place as communicated to and felt by others. Maddon's baseball chemistry lessen is the emotional involvement in the game by his players while the traditional definition of chemistry is more towards putting pieces and gears together in set roles to create a well-oiled machine (like the Big Red Machine in Cincinnati during the 1970s).
It is uncertain how an emotional team vibe can sustain itself over a 162 game roller coaster season. As one famous baseball movie said, "There is no crying in baseball."
