By Patrick Mooney, Sahadev Sharma and Ken Rosenthal
In a calculating move that stunned the baseball world, the Chicago Cubs are signing Craig Counsell to replace David Ross, the club announced Monday, immediately raising expectations at Wrigley Field.
According to Major League sources, the Cubs will give Counsell a five-year contract worth more than $40 million, making him the highest-paid manager in Major League Baseball.
It was widely believed that Counsell, who led the Milwaukee Brewers to the playoffs in five of the last six seasons, faced a choice between staying in Wisconsin or pursuing a new challenge with the New York Mets. A final decision was expected this week during Major League Baseball’s general managers meetings in Arizona. But the Cubs have done this before.
Jed Hoyer, president of baseball operations, was involved in one of these cover operations as general manager for Theo Epstein. When Joe Maddon became a free agent after the 2014 season, Cubs executives didn’t hesitate. Knowing the organization’s talent and the resources at their disposal, the Cubs released Rick Renteria after just one season. Signing Maddon to a five-year deal paid immediate dividends, with 97 wins in 2015 and a World Series title in 2016.
Hoyer has to believe that Counsell’s success in small markets will have the same impact as it did for Maddon after his run with the Tampa Bay Rays. The Brewers’ chase of the Cubs in 2018 — and winning Game 163 at Wrigley Field — became one of those moments that fired up Maddon and signaled the end of that championship bracket.
Ross was originally hired to get more out of former teammates like Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant and Javier Báez. As a rookie manager, he faced unimaginable challenges during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. The Cubs managed to win a division title and then went into extreme cost-cutting mode, trading Yu Darvish to the San Diego Padres that winter and conducting sellouts at the next two trade deadlines.
Scrutiny of in-game decisions has increased exponentially this year after the Cubs donated more than $300 million to free agents. Ross is considered a strong communicator who inspires respect from players. His steady personality helped the Cubs get out of 10 games under .500 in June, forcing the front office to step up at the trade deadline this time. Hoyer raved about the team’s preparation and consistent effort.
In what was supposed to be a transitional year, the Cubs won 83 games, played an entertaining style of baseball, and remained in playoff contention until the final weekend of the season. During Game 162 in Milwaukee, Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts praised Ross as “a great manager” and stated, “He’s our guy.”
As Jon Lester’s personal catcher, Ross helped end the 108-year World Series drought. After retiring as a player, Ross worked with Epstein and Hoyer as a special assistant in the front office. Ross built so many contacts – and showed enough potential as a manager – that it seemed harder to give him the Renteria treatment.
However, Ross failed to keep his job after an epic collapse in September and one of the sport’s best managers becoming a free agent. The rivalry between the Cubs and Brewers is about to reach a whole new level.
“Today we made the difficult decision to fire David Ross,” 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 continued to demonstrate his leadership qualities. David’s legacy will be felt in Chicago for generations and his impact on our organization will rival the legends before him.”
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How Cubs players react to the change
This move was obviously a shock to the baseball world, but the Cubs players themselves were also surprised by the hiring. The clubhouse supported Ross, even after a collapse in September that resulted in them failing to make the playoffs and blame being spread elsewhere. But none of the players were willing to point the finger at Ross.
Ultimately, they saw him as someone who had their backs and had a positive influence on his ability to hold the team together in really difficult times. But you were aware that Ross wasn’t moving anything. His playing tactics were questioned at times and much of this fell on reserve coach Andy Green. — Sahadev Sharma, Cubs writer
Questions about the Cubs coaching staff
Aside from how this came to be and what comes next in terms of squad composition, the main question now is whether the coaching staff will remain largely intact. The Cubs have long praised the work of pitching coach Tommy Hottovy. Both the front office and players believe he is one of the best in the business at his job. The Cubs finally seemed to find stability as coach Dustin Kelly oversaw an offense that was among the most productive in the game last season.
Green applied for two leadership positions, none of which he ultimately received. However, will he continue to coach Counsell’s bench? Veteran coach John Mallee was recently promoted to the big league roster after a year as the Triple-A hitting coach. All of that seems to be up in the air right now as the Cubs make a dramatic and unexpected change in the face of their team. – Sharma
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(Photo: Brandon Sloter/Getty Images)