From launching pad to the think tank

This has been baseball’s year of the launch. Every shred of analytical evidence tells batters to put the ball in the air — that’s where the money is — and forget about groundballs. And the statistical evidence is staggering.

In 2000, right in the heart of the so-called Steroid Era, 101 batters hit 20 or more homers. Going into Thursday night’s play, this year’s total was 116. If any headline captured the madness, it was “Scooter Gennett Joins Lou Gehrig ...”

Hold it right there. For the record, he and Gehrig are the only players to have a fourhomer game and four grand slams in a single season. But wait — Scooter and the Iron Horse forever linked?

Fortunately, with the playoffs upon us, there will be a noticeable change. We’re largely done with the likes of Rougned Odor, Joey Gallo, Maikel Franco, Jose Bautista and Albert Pujols, players who hit for power but otherwise put up embarrassingly bad numbers. It’s time for smart, fundamental hitting to take over.

Watch the Cleveland Indians and Houston Astros, two American League powerhouses who rank 29th and 30th (dead last) in the number of team strikeouts by their hitters. Watch Jose Ramirez, Francisco Lindor, George Springer and Josh Reddick, players who take pride in making contact and hitting in the clutch.

Washington’s Daniel Murphy is an absolute treat, the modern-day Wade Boggs with his pure, level stroke to all fields. Boston rookie Rafael Devers is a natural-born hitter who lives by the line drive. The Dodgers’ Justin Turner had a life-changing experience by joining the launch-angle crowd, coming “out of his shoes,” as they say, with his heavy-uppercut swing, but he’s hitting .321. Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt, likely to meet in the National League wild-card game, are MVP candidates because they’re just good hitters, period.

Don’t worry, launch-angle fans. There will be plenty of power-or-bust hitting in the postseason (think Aaron Judge, just for starters, and it would be nice if the Yankees can advance to the ALDS). But somewhere, Giants executive Brian Sabean will be smiling. There’s still plenty of room for intelligent hitting in this game. Now, if he could acquire just

one power hitter ...