The baseball world was put flat on its back on Monday, November 6th. That was the day the news broke that the Chicago Cubs were relieving David Ross of his duties as manager in favor of former Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell.
Counsell was not expected to return to Milwaukee when he was permitted to take interviews with other organizations in the league. Of note, the Cleveland Guardians and the New York Mets took the opportunity to bring him in. Somewhere in the middle, Cubs President of Baseball Operations, Jed Hoyer, swooped in.
It’s not that the Cubs were on bad terms with Ross; it’s just that when you can improve – you do. Ross will forever be a part of Cubs history. He helped lead a team to end a century-old drought and then turned around to manage them four years later. For the most part, he was never supposed to succeed, but he almost did in 2023.
But, like when Joe Maddon became available after 2014, if you can improve – you do. Counsell is coming into an organization filled with stars in the making and a team ready to win. He’ll be tasked with managing the trajectory of young talents’ path to success and keeping the veterans interested in staying.
Craig Counsell Brings A Breath Of Fresh Air
This is not going to be a David Ross diss track. Again, he’ll always be a legend on the North Side of Chicago. But one of his downfalls was sticking to one thing for too long. In particular, he rode with his lineup order down to the bottom of the ocean. He relied too much on what he saw his predecessor do and felt safe doing the same.
One of the first things Craig Counsell said at spring camp was he would not be scared to change what is not working. He did it in Milwaukee and took them to the playoffs several times. At the beginning of spring play, Counsell experimented with different lineups and players to get a feel for his team.
As spring training came to a close, a consistency emerged. A healthy Ian Happ was batting leadoff. Happ’s ability to recognize balls and strikes and get on base at an above-average rate has many believing he is the best man for the role. However, Counsell’s best decision was who follows Happ in the lineup.
Seiya Suzuki Batting Second Is The Best Formula For Cubs
Seiya Suzuki came to spring looking ready to go, and he proved he was. He had a .459 average, six home runs, and eleven total extra-base hits in just 37 at-bats. Now, there’s no way anyone can expect him to bat .400 through an entire MLB season. But his numbers were off the charts in spring.
Having Suzuki in the two-hole could become a cheat code for Craig Counsell and the Cubs. With Happ’s ability to get on base and Suzuki’s ability to do the same, the Cubs could have a lineup filled with cleanup batters down to sixth or seventh in the lineup. That’s an excellent issue to have.
Suzuki’s performance with his bat will be a crucial part of the Cubs being able to make a run in 2024. The Cubs are finally beginning to see what they signed him to have and bring to the plate every day. If Suzuki can match the energy we’ve seen out of him in spring, the playoffs aren’t the only thing the Cubs will be talking about. We could be chanting “M-V-P” in the bleachers by August.
