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SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – As soon as reports of Craig Counsell’s surprising destination circulated online, a National League executive, unsolicited, texted a reporter two exploding head emojis along with three letters: WTF. When asked to explain this, the director explained, “It’s a lot to digest. I’m not sure what’s more shocking: where he landed or how much he got.”
Counsell became baseball’s highest-paid executive on Monday when it was announced he would be the next Cubs skipper. This was especially notable because the club already had a manager in David Ross. Now Ross is out of a job and Counsell has a new five-year deal worth $40 million, the end result of an unexpected development that sent shockwaves throughout the industry.
Almost no one knew about Chicago’s secret courtship of Counsell, who had been linked to multiple teams with manager vacancies. The Athletics spoke to nearly a dozen people around the game, granting anonymity where necessary so employees of other organizations could speak freely, to explore the ripple effect Counsell’s decision could have on management jobs and baseball as a whole.
“It’s time managers get paid what they’re worth,” said a current big league manager. “The lack of a coaches association has hurt this part of our game for years. I hate it for Rossy, but love what Craig has done for the industry.”
A former manager told it The Athletics that he had once been in the same position as Counsell: offered a position currently occupied by someone else. He turned it down because “it just felt wrong” and wonders why the “brotherhood” of management seems to have fallen by the wayside. This former manager said he is a fan of Counsell even though he doesn’t know him well, but pointed out that the new Cubs skipper hasn’t won a World Series and thought the hysteria and bidding war surrounding him was a bit overblown.
“(Bruce)Bochy? If it was Bochy, I would understand,” he said of the reigning World Series champion Texas Rangers manager.
When The AthleticsKen Rosenthal reported that Counsell would make it in 2024, but it would be for a team with no known opening. The Rangers were a common industry bet as his landing spot, under the assumption that Bochy would retire and Counsell would be his replacement. Then the rest of the story came out: Per Rosenthal, Counsell was headed to the North Side.
“I was kind of like, ‘Wow.’ Not surprising, because there have been managers who have earned that much. But still, the way it happened,” said Astros general manager Dana Brown, who was interested in Counsell for the Astros’ open position because of Dusty Baker’s retirement. “It went quickly. A bit out of nowhere. But I’m happy for him. He is a lifer in the game and has done wonderful things.”
Another former skipper said: “Craig Counsell is an elite manager. Look at his record in one-point games. Take a look at his track record compared to projections year over year. He deserves to get paid.”
Some in the game believe Counsell’s deal will help boost other skippers’ salaries in the future: “a bigger piece of the pie,” as one agent put it.
“The truth is, no one will ever realize their maximum value until or unless you are willing to be a free agent,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “That’s just the fact. Counsell was willing to do so. Players do it every year. It should not be considered a taboo for a manager to exercise his right to become a free agent. I think the industry is a little bit disapproving of that and I give Counsell a lot of credit and respect for talking through it with his family and being willing to do that.
Others were skeptical that it would bring about any meaningful change.
“Look what the Mets just paid (Carlos) Mendoza,” said an American League executive of the Mets’ new skipper, who will earn a total of $4.5 million for three years, far less than Counsell. And while it’s ultimately a good thing for manager salaries, some questioned the ethics of the Cubs waiting to fire Ross until Counsell had agreed to take the job.
“The reason managers’ and coaches’ salaries don’t change much is because there’s always someone willing to take your job,” said a current member of the Major League coaching staff. “If I had fought another 40 kilometers or another year, they would not have renewed me as coach. I don’t know how much front offices really appreciate (the contributions). I don’t think Counsell changes that much because look what the Mets just did.
“I think the only time it would really change is if people actually roll the dice and say, ‘I think I’m worth more,’ and take the risk. But there is always someone who wants to take your job. We really need to form a union, but look how long it took for the minor league players to form a union. It’s still a culture of ‘be happy you have a job.’”
It’s the “managerial Hunger Games,” one former manager joked before pointing out a bit of history. Cubs president Jed Hoyer’s plan took a page from former executive Theo Epstein, who hired Joe Maddon to take Rick Renteria’s place after the 2014 season. (Renteria’s contract was terminated a week after Maddon opted out of his deal with the Tampa Bay Rays.)
“It’s in their playbook,” said one former manager. “I’m glad Counsell came out and said the bar needs to be raised for manager pay, but I’m not sure I would have taken a job where there was already a manager.”
Are the optics really that bad? Hoyer told reporters at the GM meetings that his job is to win as many games as possible “in the short and long term” and there was “nothing about this move” to get Counsell who didn’t meet that criteria.
In that sense, Ross was just a victim in an industry that was often ruthlessly searching for an edge.
“If you take away the emotional aspect of it and look at it from a purely business perspective, it happens in every company,” said another current executive, who thinks Counsell’s deal will be good for the other 29 teams. “Baseball is entertainment, but it is a business and these transitions happen often (in business). In our industry it is seen as a taboo.”
The same manager believes the Cubs ultimately did Ross a disservice by publicly saying he was their guy — and then privately trying to upgrade.
“If I’m in an organization that doesn’t value me, I don’t want to be there,” the manager said. “For me, the intimacy of those relationships (between front office and manager) is what we are looking for. My bosses make me feel valued and grateful for the work I do.”
Even Counsell’s former boss was surprised.
“I didn’t see that coming,” said Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns, who was with Counsell in Milwaukee. “Craig can play things pretty close to the vest. In this case he was clearly playing it very close to the vest because none of us had any idea where this was going.
(Top photo of Craig Counsell as Brewers manager: Patrick McDermott / Getty Images)
