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Several Milwaukee Brewers players and fans, as well as team owner Mark Attanasio, said they were shocked by former manager Craig Counsell's decision to leave the franchise and accept the same position with the National League Central Division rival Chicago Cubs on Monday (November 6).
Counsell, 53, had been part of the Brewers organization since 2007, having spent the final five seasons of his playing career with the franchise -- as well as one prior season in 2004 -- before initially taking a front office position as special assistant to then-general manager Doug Melvin in 2012. The former infielder served a part-time role as a color analyst for Brewers radio broadcasts before being hired as the team's manager in 2015.
Attanasio told reporters he asked Counsell, "Are you messing with me?" when the manager informed him of his decision.
"We're all here today because we lost Craig," Attanasio said via ESPN. "But I've reflected on this -- Craig has lost us, and he's lost our community also."
"It kind of came out of nowhere," Brewers ace Corbin Burnes told MLB.com. "I think my reaction is the same as everyone in the organization and the fan base: We're just shocked initially."
"I'm still processing it, too," added Brewers pitcher Brandon Woodruff. "I was not expecting the Cubs. ... But then when you dig down a little bit deeper, you kind of get it."
WKOW spoke with Brewers fans on the University of Wisconsin campus in Madison following news of Counsell's departure on Monday.
"It's pretty devastating. It's like a stab in the back. The Cubs [are] obviously our biggest rival. We don't like them. They don't like us. And I feel like a lot of Cubs fans switched up pretty fast," said Brewers fan Kollin Mangan.
Another fan said he was "shocked" when he learned of Counsell's departure.
"I just looked up 'Brewers' and saw that he left and went to the Cubs and I was just kind of shocked, almost disappointed," said Oliver Kansh. "I thought he'd be our manager for a long, long time to come, especially with how young he is."
Counsell has a career managerial record of 707-625, which includes three National League Central division titles -- two in the last three seasons -- and six playoff appearances in the last seven seasons.
Counsell's hiring is reported to have come together "in the last few days" as the Cubs waited until after November 1 to speak to him, rather than ask the Brewers for permission, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers.
"The Cubs needed to ask the Brewers permission to speak to Counsell before Nov.1. They did not. So this ALL came together in the last few days. Its likely to be the most expensive managerial hire in MLB history," Rogers wrote.
Counsell was also reported to be a candidate for the New York Mets' managerial position prior to his reported agreement with the Cubs. The Mets are reportedly hiring New York Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza for their vacant managerial position.
The Cubs announced the sudden firing of former manager David Ross just prior to reports of Counsell's hiring. Ross, 46, was hired as the Cubs' manager in 2020 and went 262-284 in four seasons. The Georgia native was Chicago's starting catcher on its 2016 World Series champion team before retiring the following offseason.