What national writers (and those in Chicago) have to say about Craig Counsell managing the Cubs; was it really his 'dream job?'
National writers have weighed in on the shocking maneuver that saw ex-Brewers manager Craig Counsell jump to the same position with the rival Chicago Cubs. While Chicago fans and writers naturally have some excitement over the news, there's also the surprise ouster of David Ross that happened in the process.
Was the Cubs opening really a 'dream job' for Counsell?
Perhaps the most eye-opening piece of coverage came from Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci, who indicated Counsell always wanted to end up with the Cubs.
"As the Cubs did their homework, knowing Counsell chose to play this year out rather than sign an extension with Milwaukee, they were told by one of Counsell’s friends, 'If he ever managed anywhere else, the Cubs have always been his dream job,'" Verducci wrote.
Verducci also wrote that the Mets job wasn't necessarily the fit it appeared to be.
"There were two problems with that assumption," he noted. "Stearns did not hire Counsell in Milwaukee. He inherited him when he was named GM in September 2015. They worked well together but were not particularly close, especially as Milwaukee emphasized analytics more in game decisions. Moreover, the Mets’ advantage of money was offset by geography and where the team stands on the winning curve. It is not a plum job despite plum money.
"'Over the last few days people were still writing that it looked like it was Counsell’s job,' says a source who spoke to Counsell during that time. 'That wasn’t the case. He was all but out over the past few days. New York was not at the top of his list.'"
'The Athletic' writes how it went down so quietly
Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic painted a picture of how the Cubs swooped in to land Counsell.
"To ensure that this stayed quiet, Hoyer was the only person to meet with Counsell, very few people in the front office were aware of the meeting, and Counsell never came to the Cubs offices adjacent to Wrigley Field, according to a league source," Sharma wrote. "The two had very little interaction prior to that meeting on Nov. 1, but seemed to hit it off quickly and talked deep into the night.
"In the coming days, Counsell would meet with the New York Mets and Cleveland Guardians while staying in contact with the Brewers. Late Saturday evening, Hoyer was optimistic that they were close on the financials and a deal would be made. By Sunday morning, the deal was done. Hoyer had poached the best manager in the game from a division rival, and by agreeing to a five-year deal worth more than $40 million, Counsell had set a new level for managerial compensation while also remaining close to family."
What makes Craig Counsell so special as a manager?
ESPN's Bradford Doolittle wrote about why the gambit was worth it for the Cubs, pointing out what makes him so special.
"First, there is his ability to internalize and communicate the work of his team's analytical arm," Doolittle wrote. "He has the gravitas of a former World Series-winning player, but he doesn't just interpret metrics superficially, he understands them at a conceptual level, so that they intertwine with his extensive practical experience on the field itself.
"This is one of the skills that make managers like Counsell and Tampa Bay's Kevin Cash in many ways the prototypes for this era in baseball. ...
"Now, the game's best manager is moving 90 miles to the south, and in doing so, he's flipping the script in the NL Central. You better believe when Cubs fans descend on Milwaukee next season, as they always do, they aren't going to be shy about reminding their friendly neighbors to the north about who they have standing in their dugout."
'One of the most shocking managerial moves in MLB history'
CBS Sports writer Dayn Perry called it one of the most shocking managerial moves in MLB history.
"While the Cubs are more willing spenders than the Brewers under Mark Attanasio, the Ricketts don't fortify the roster in line with their vast revenues," Perry wrote. "Will that continue? Or was Counsell given assurances that the Cubs will spend like the financial powerhouses they are? Going to a team less inclined to invest in the on-field product than Cohen and the Mets are is another surprise. One could see Counsell's spurning all that to remain with his home-state team he'd been with for almost a decade, but the Cubs? All of this makes the surprise choice even more compelling."
What are Chicago writers saying about the move?
Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune wrote that the maneuver harkened back to what former Cubs president Theo Epstein once pulled off: Replacing an incumbent manager with a surprise free-agent hire.
"Cubs President Jed Hoyer signaled the missing piece in Year 3 of the team’s rebuild was a well-respected manager who could get the most out of his players and get them to a championship level," Sullivan wrote.
"Hoyer went to great lengths to defend Ross from fan criticism this past season, making the move even more stunning than the Cubs’ dismissal of Rick Renteria to hire (Joe) Maddon after the 2014 season. That hiring involved a recruiting trip to Florida by Epstein and Hoyer and a leak of their interest in Maddon well before making the move.
"Monday’s news leak, first reported by The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, was like an explosion at Clark and Addison. The reverberations will be felt for months.
"Ross and Renteria, meanwhile, will forever be linked in Cubs history for the dismissals by Epstein and Hoyer, who both appeared satisfied with the status quo. When asked at his end-of-season news conference how important 2024 would be for Ross to continue as Cubs manager, Hoyer gave a long-winded answer that indicated Ross would return."
Rick Telander of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote that not even a 'legend' like David Ross was safe.
"Even though he had a year left on his contract and a bunch of statements of support and confidence from the front office, Ross got the dagger in a business where knives are never far out of reach," Telander wrote.
James Neveau of NBC Sports Chicago said this move surpassed the past surprise of the Cubs hiring Maddon to replace Renteria.
"What's more, Ross had established himself not just as a manager, but as a borderline franchise icon," Neveau wrote. "His home run in Game 7 of the 2016 World Series will forever live in Cubs' lore, and between that and his 'Grandpa Rossy' persona, coupled with the adoration he engendered in teammates like Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant, his place in the good graces of fans remained unchallenged.
"That standing, and the management's calculus, apparently changed in early November when Counsell’s contract with the Brewers expired. According to reports, the Cubs could have asked Milwaukee for permission to speak to Counsell before that date, but chose not to, instead waiting for him to become a free agent before reaching out. ..."The reality of the situation is that Ross was always going to be borderline in terms of having what it took to push the team to the next level, and the front office feels that Counsell is a slam dunk in that regard, and ultimately that’s why this decision was made."
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 'Dream job?' National and Chicago writers react to Craig Counsell news
