Is Craig Counsell worth all the hype?

Even though the MLB offseason just began, there’s already been a lot of action. 

Not so much with free agents yet, but with managers. In the last week alone, four teams have brought in new skippers, with the biggest surprise coming from the Chicago Cubs. While most teams let their current manager go before hiring somebody new, the Cubs decided to do things a little differently. They signed Craig Counsell to lead the team and then fired David Ross.

With both the New York Mets and Cleveland Guardians interested in Counsell, the Cubs swooped in to nab him, and they’re paying a pretty penny to do it. At $8 million per year over the next five years, they now have the highest-paid manager ever. For context, only five Cubs players made more than that in 2023. So, is Counsell worth the money – and the hype?

After a long if mostly unremarkable, career, Counsell retired as a player in 2012. He spent a few years in the front office of the Milwaukee Brewers before becoming manager in 2015. In his first two seasons, he compiled a lackluster record of 134-165, but then things began to turn around. Over the next seven seasons, the Brewers finished above .500 six times, and their record was an impressive 573-460. The team had three first-place finishes in Counsell’s tenure, along with five trips to the playoffs.

What might make Cubs fans nervous, however, is Counsell’s record in the postseason: 7-12. Even worse is that the Brewers only won one playoff series under his watch, and that was back in 2018.

The Cubs haven’t made the postseason since 2020, and clearly they’re counting on Counsell to change that. But, unless there are some big alterations to their roster, and signing a certain two-way free agent phenom might change everything, there’s probably not a lot he can do.

So, what kind of a leash will Counsell get? Of the last 10 Cubs managers, only one – Joe Maddon – made it past four years. First-place finishes are well and good, but Counsell wasn’t offered a Brinks truck just so the Cubs could put up a few more division title banners up at Wrigley. If he continues to flounder in the postseason, the Chicago faithful won’t be shy about voicing their displeasure. And they’re probably not going to name any parks after him.