Cubs hire manager Craig Counsell away from Milwaukee
In a stunning move announced Monday, the Cubs hired Craig Counsell as their new manager and fired David Ross.
It's far from shocking Counsell is no longer in the Brewers' dugout, where he guided Milwaukee to five playoff trips over the last six years
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But after his contract expired, Counsell was supposed to land with the Mets or the Padres. Maybe the Astros or Angels or Guardians.
The Cubs? Again, stunning.
Ross took some heavy heat this season as the Cubs ran out of gas down the stretch and squandered a postseason berth that looked to be in the bag.
On the final day of the season — in Milwaukee ironically — Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts was asked about Ross and he certainly didn't sound like a managerial change was coming just over a month later.
“I think Rossy had a great season and the players play hard for him,” Ricketts said. “He's our guy. I like him a lot. What I'm proud of, when the team got down way below .500 and it looked like the season was over, he didn't let it go. He got the guys back and playing hard, and we got to here.
“He was a big part of that. He's a great manager.”
Ross was a catcher with the Cubs for two seasons and a popular player on the 2016 World Series championship team.
In 2020, Ross took over for Joe Maddon as Cubs manager and was 262-284 (. 480) over four seasons. He led the Cubs to the NL Central title in his first year in the dugout.
“Today, we made the difficult decision to dismiss David Ross as our major-league manager,” Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said in a statement. “On behalf of the Cubs organization, we express our deep gratitude for David's contributions to our club, both on and off the field. First as a player and then as a manager, David continually showcased his ability to lead.
“David's legacy will be felt in Chicago for generations and his impact to our organization will stack up with the legends that came before him. Going forward, our major-league team will be managed by Craig Counsell.”
The Cubs are reportedly making the 53-year-old Counsell the highest-paid manager in MLB history with a five-year contract worth $40 million.
Even though his departure was expected, Counsell's decision to remain in the division and manage the Cubs caught two of his former star pitchers off guard.
“It kind of came out of nowhere,” Brewers ace Corbin Burnes told MLB.com. “I think my reaction is the same as everyone in the organization and the fan base. We're just shocked initially.”
“I'm still processing it, too,” starter Brandon Woodruff said. “I was not expecting the Cubs.”
Counsell had deep ties to the Brewers.
He was born, raised and still lives in Whitefish Bay, a Milwaukee suburb. His father, John, was the Brewers' director of community relations and the speaker bureau from 1978-88.
Counsell played the last five seasons of his 16-year MLB career with Milwaukee and he's the winningest manager in Brewers history (707-625).
Mark Attanasio, Milwaukee's principal owner, tried retaining Counsell but didn't come close to matching the Cubs' record offer.
“It is what it is,” Attanasio said on a Zoom call Monday night. “We didn't come together at the end. I reflect on the fact that we've been successful now for a really long time. I think that's part of an enormous effort. We've lost Craig but I've reflected on this, Craig has lost us and lost our community.
“Craig was definitely a key part of our success but if I wanted to list all the reasons we have been successful, we would be on for another half an hour.”