When the Chicago Cubs called up Owen Caissie, there was a lot of hype and excitement that the organization’s top prospect would infect life into a struggling offense. Instead, he has spent a substantial amount of time on the bench, failed to draw a start all weekend against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and received just one pinch hit at-bat.
Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell explains why Owen Caissie did not start all weekend against the Pittsburgh Pirates
Jesse Rogers of ESPN reported Craig Counsell’s response when asked about not starting Owen Caissie all weekend. “We have a pretty good group of OF’s here,” Counsell said. “Owen has to cross that bar. We’re going to play the best guys every day. This is why we wrestled with calling him up, because of the group of OF’s we have.”
Fans were furious with Craig Counsell’s explanation for not starting Owen Caissie
Fans quickly took to social media to voice their frustration with Counsell, his explanation, and questioned why they even called Caissie up to begin with. The overwhelming sentiment was clear: the current outfield group is underperforming, so why not give Caissie a shot, even if he initially only is given a leash of a few games? Many argued that keeping him on the bench does little to aid his long-term development, is not good for his confidence, and feels like a missed opportunity during a critical stretch.
With the Cubs still searching for answers at the plate, it will be interesting to see if Caissie gets more opportunities moving forward, or if his promotion continues to raise more questions than it answers.
