Craig Counsell has established himself as one of the top managers in baseball during his time with the Milwaukee Brewers, but now he’s switching sides of the rivalry as he takes over the top job with the Chicago Cubs.
Counsell, a long-time MLB veteran player, took over the Brewers in 2015 and guided them to five playoff appearances in nine seasons at the helm.
Now, he’ll look to guide the Cubs back to the postseason, as the North Siders haven’t made the playoffs in a full 162-game season since the 2018 campaign.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Chicago sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
So what should Cubs fans know about Counsell?
Playing as an infielder, Counsell had a 16-year playing career, including spending a long chunk of time with the Brewers. He collected World Series rings with the Marlins in 1997 and the Diamondbacks in 2001, slashing .255/.342/.344 in his MLB career. He hit 42 career home runs, drove in 390 RBI’s and registered 103 stolen bases in 5,488 career plate appearances.
After his playing career ended in 2011, Counsell worked in the Brewers’ front office for two seasons, then was a color commentator for Brewers’ broadcasts for one season.
He was hired as the team’s manager in May 2015. The Brewers won three division titles with Counsell at the helm and had reached the postseason in five of the last six seasons, including an NLCS appearance in 2018.
MLB
That season, the Brewers finished in a tie with the Cubs atop the National League Central, winning a one-game playoff at Wrigley Field. The Brewers then were dispatched from the playoffs by the Los Angeles Dodgers.
This year, the Brewers won the Central Division crown again, but were swept by the Arizona Diamondbacks in two games in October.
In nine seasons at the helm, Counsell went 707-625 as manager of the Brewers, racking up the most wins in team history.
Throughout the season, rumors swirled around Counsell’s future with the club, as he managed the final year of his contract. Speculation only ramped up after David Stearns left the Brewers to join the front office of the New York Mets, with Counsell linked to that job after the club fired Buck Showalter.
The Brewers reportedly offered Counsell a deal worth $5.5 million a season to stay in Milwaukee, but instead he signed a five-year pact with the Cubs that will reportedly pay him $8 million a season, a record for a Major League manager.
Now, Counsell will look to get the Cubs back to the postseason for the first time since 2020. The Cubs fell just short this year, finishing behind the Philadelphia Phillies, Miami Marlins and Arizona Diamondbacks in the wild card race.
The Cubs haven’t won a playoff game since 2017, when they lost in five games to the Dodgers in the NLCS. The Cubs lost the NL Wild Card game in 2018 and were swept in the 2020 playoffs by the Marlins in a best-of-three series at Wrigley Field.