Yeah, I think having some decent vets around helped prevent the clubhouse from imploding. Being the worst team in baseball history while also having an incompetent boob for manager will certainly test your limits. I didn’t read or hear much about any in-fighting amongst the players like there was in 2023.
As for your second question, not sure I’m following. Tauchman wasn’t just brought in for “leadership”. He was a productive role player last year who is coming in dirt cheap. He likely makes the team better. Again, I will wait and see if there are other moves before worrying about him blocking someone.