Craig Counsell shocked the MLB when he jumped ship from the Milwaukee Brewers to go join their National League West rival in the Chicago Cubs. So unsurprisingly, when the Cubs trekked out to Milwaukee for the first time this season, Brewers fans let Counsell know how they feel about him by booing him repeatedly throughout the day.
This is pretty much par for the course in the world of sports, especially when you are perceived to have turned your back on a team like Counsell did to the Brewers. But the veteran manager knew what he was getting himself into when he left Milwaukee for Chicago, and he wasn't too worried about the boos he received from fans throughout the series opener on Monday.
“The fans are here to enjoy the day, enjoy a baseball game. They get to do what they want. Hopefully they had a good time.” – Craig Counsell, ESPN
Craig Counsell opens up on what convinced him to ditch Brewers for Cubs
It was widely expected that Counsell would leave the Brewers over the offseason, but watching him join the Cubs was particularly crushing for their fans. Counsell had become a popular figure in Milwaukee, so to see him pull a 180 and go join their divisional rival on a whim was a tough pill to swallow.
Counsell's decision to join Chicago was relatively shocking, partly because the Cubs had a solid manager of their own in David Ross leading the way for them. After the Cubs 5-1 loss to the Brewers, Counsell pulled back the curtain a bit more on his decision to leave, indicating that the departure of former general manager David Stearns helped convince him it was time to go.
“David Stearns leaving made me think about it a lot. I don't know how it couldn't. It happened over time. Life takes different turns. I don't want to plan out my life forever. I want to do things that challenge me, that excite me. You have to take the ride of life and see what happens. This is not something I necessarily expected to happen, but you have to jump on the ride and go.” – Craig Counsell, ESPN
While Counsell's departure certainly left a mark for Brewers fans, the team's 31-22 start to the year has likely lessened the blow a bit. Milwaukee is leading the pack in the NL West, while the Cubs latest loss has them sitting at the .500 mark with a 27-27 record, which isn't exactly how they envisioned this campaign going, especially with the arrival of Counsell.
The 2024 campaign is still young, so Counsell and the Cubs have time to turn things around, and if they do, chances are they will be competing with the Brewers for the top spot in the division. And if that does end up happening, Counsell should expect to continue getting booed by their fans, even if he doesn't seem to mind it all that much.
