(670 The Score) In his first media session since making the shocking move Monday to fire David Ross and to install Craig Counsell as the Cubs’ new manager, president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer on Tuesday admitted that dismissing Ross was an agonizing decision but one that he had to make to improve the organization.
“It just felt like an exceptionally hard decision but one that I felt like I had to make if the opportunity was there,” Hoyer said. “From my perspective, my job is to figure out how to win as many games as we possibly can in the short term and the long term, and there was nothing about this move that I didn’t feel like met that criteria. Like I said, this is no knock on Rossy – who I think incredibly highly of – but I just felt like Craig is at the very, very top of the game. It’s hard to rank managers, but he’s certainly at the very, very top of the game. I’ve really admired watching him from afar.”
Counsell, 53, had managed the NL Central rival Brewers for the past nine seasons, leading them to five playoff berths and a .531 winning percentage in that span. Hoyer had been monitoring Counsell’s future, as his contract was set to expire on Oct. 31 and he didn’t reach an extension with the Brewers.
Hoyer and the Cubs made contact with Counsell on Nov. 1 – as quietly as possible, because Ross was still employed as their manager and under contract through 2024.
Hoyer was pleasantly surprised that Counsell’s next destination hadn’t already been lined up by Nov. 1, as the Brewers had been eliminated from the playoffs on Oct. 4. So when Counsell became available, Hoyer set up a meeting and they hit it off while their views aligned. Counsell's family is in the Milwaukee area, which made Chicago an attractive destination for him in comparison to other teams considering the proximity between the cities.
With all those factors in play, Hoyer knew what he needed to do. It resulted in Counsell agreeing to a five-year, $40-million deal, which will make him the highest-paid manager in MLB history.
“I feel like I have a responsibility to the city, to the fan base to win as many games in the long term as I can,” Hoyer said. “This felt like this checked that box. It was a really hard decision. Obviously, some really hard conversations went with that. But I felt like it was just the right thing to do.”
Hoyer declined to provide many details about his conservation with Ross in which he informed him of his firing Monday. After flying to Florida, Hoyer delivered the news in person to Ross.
“As expected, he was amazingly respectful,” Hoyer said.
Ross, 46, went 262-284 (.480) in four seasons leading the Cubs, who reached the playoffs in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. The Cubs went 83-79 in 2023, squandering a playoff berth by collapsing in the final weeks of September.
Hoyer called Ross a “great partner.”
“We’ve been through a lot together,” Hoyer said. “Obviously, it was a very hard, emotional conversation. I think the world of him. I think he’s got an amazingly bright future. He’ll clearly land on his feet and have a great career in this game for a long time, but there was a suddenness to all of this that was unavoidable and unfortunate.
Ross wasn’t offered another job in the Cubs’ organization, Hoyer said.
“You have to be willing to take risks and you have to be willing to make really hard and unpopular decisions,” Hoyer said of the Cubs’ blockbuster move. “I have had to make a lot of those decisions.”