Craig Counsell eager to take on challenge of getting Cubs back to playoffs
CHICAGO (CBS) -- For years, Cubs fans haven't liked Craig Counsell very much, but he became an instant fan favorite after the Cubs lured their new manager away from the division-rival Brewers last week.
The Cubs formally introduced Counsell as their new manager on Monday, a week after signing him to a deal reportedly worth $40 million over the next five years – the highest salary ever for a major league manager – and firing previous manager David Ross.
Counsell, 53, acknowledged being the highest paid manager in the league brings extra pressure to succeed with the Cubs, who fell short of the playoffs after a late-season collapse in 2023. The Cubs lost five of their last six games – including two of three against the Brewers – to land one game shy of the last NL wild card spot.
"There's pressure in this job, man. There should be, and I accept that, and welcome it, and I think it should be there … regardless of what's going on salary-wise. There's a financial component to this, obviously there is, but my job is to win baseball games no matter what," he said.
Counsell just led the Brewers to the playoffs in five of the past six seasons, including three National League Central titles. His 707-625 record over nine years in Milwaukee gives him the franchise record for wins and games managed.
On Monday, Counsell said he was ready for a new challenge and couldn't pass up the opportunity to manage the Cubs.
"I just thought that a new challenge was where I had to push myself," Counsell said.
Part of that challenge will be having more postseason success with the Cubs than he did with the Brewers. Despite a .531 winning percentage in the regular season in nine years in Milwaukee, the Brewers lost five of six playoff series, and nine of their last 10 postseason games, with a .368 winning percentage in five postseason appearances.
Counsell said he looks forward to the challenge of not only getting the Cubs back to the playoffs, but the World Series. The Cubs haven't reached the postseason since 2020.
"You walk into the energy, you walk into a place that you already know it demands your best, and that feeling is just a feeling that I need to have, and I love to have, and I love that to be a part of my daily life. And so that that feeling exists right now is really, really special for me," he said.
Counsell said he believes the Cubs are ready to take it to another level.
"The organization is just in great health," Counsell said. "[Cubs president Jed Hoyer] presented a very compelling vision of that. It is time to be a Cub. There is momentum happening here, and it feels close, and that means there's a really exciting future ahead of us,"
Hoyer said he's always thought highly of Counsell, and felt an obligation to try to bring him on as manager after his contract with the Brewers expired.
"I made it compelling from a financial standpoint, certainly, and I made it really compelling from a job standpoint. I just thought he was the perfect partner," he said. "I've watched him from afar for a long time. I've watched him in this ballpark far too often, and just felt like he always maximized their talent. Every year it felt like whatever they had, he got the most out of, if not a little bit more."
Hoyer said he also believes Counsell can push him and the rest of the organization to get to the next level.
Hoyer said forcing out Ross made hiring Counsell a "very difficult" move.
"As I said, I feel like my job is to win as many games as we can in the short-term and long-term. I felt like this met criteria. It doesn't mean it wasn't unbelievably difficult to do. I have so much respect for Rossy. The two of us have been through a lot together. I've put him in some very difficult positions with some trades, and he always responded like a great teammate, a great partner as well. So it was really difficult, and I have no doubt David will have an exceptionally bright future in this game," he said.
Counsell said Ross texted him before news of his hiring as manager became official, and he immediately called Ross Back.
"I've always had great respect for David. That gave me the ultimate respect for David, the way he handled the conversation," he said.
Counsell also acknowledged that replacing Ross will present an extra challenge, as Ross was a key player on the Cubs' 2016 World Series championship run.
"I think David is a figure that will live in Cubs history forever, absolutely, because he was part of a great great baseball team, an essential part of it," he said.
Part of the health of the organization is a belief they will spend big this offseason. Hoyer and Counsell didn't necessarily think Counsell's record contract meant a big spending spree was coming.
"I think we're in good position from a major league team standpoint. Our farm system is in good shape. We do have available resources. I don't look at this as a one-year situation. I want to look at it like over the next few years I certainly want to supplement this roster, and continue the trajectory we're on, but I don't think the signal is that we are going to be out in the market incredibly aggressive. I think we'll continue to make small moves that make will us better," Hoyer said.
Counsell was able to keep the Brewers in playoff contention most years despite overseeing a roster with a relatively small payroll, and few players considered top tier stars. He
"Great organizations don't win things in free agency. They win things in every part of player acquisition. So there's no question that free agency is a part of it, but … we have to get excited about acquiring players in every way, and particularly be excited about acquiring young players, and helping them develop, and getting them to a good place," he said. "Free agency, it's easy, it's the headline, but it's also not sustainable."
Counsell consistently exceeded expectations in Milwaukee by finding ways to bring out the best in his players, but he hesitated to define what trait makes a player a winner.
"I don't know if I have the answer. I don't know if I'm good enough to get that right all the time. I think the biggest thing people have to do is we have to figure out, like, you've got to have the courage to be yourself, and I think identifying that in people is probably the first thing. There's a selflessness to winning," he said.
Counsell, widely regarded as one of the best managers in Major League Baseball, pointed to three qualities that make him great at his job.
"I have to be prepared. That's first. I have to have the courage to be myself, because when you put yourself out here in these situations, you mess up, you have flaws, you're not going to be perfect, that's okay," he said. "And then I have to connect with people, because that brings out the best in them, and I think that's specifically players, to put them in a position to succeed, and put them in the best place to succeed, mentally and as teammates. Those are the three things that I ask of myself, and try to do, and then you just, there's some let the chips where they fall that you have to be okay with."
Counsell said he hasn't made any decisions on his coaching staff. As he put it, everything's been going really fast, and he just wants to slow things down and really evaluate everything and everyone before coming to any conclusions.
