Chicago Cubs become national attraction as Craig Counsell is introduced as manager

The Chicago Cubs officially introduced Craig Counsell as their manager on Monday as it was the first time that Counsell has donned a Cubs jersey, a jersey that he will presumably be wearing for the next five years during the Major League Baseball regular season.

“It feels good.” pic.twitter.com/eQVvJfigp5
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) November 13, 2023

There is a sense that Counsell's arrival as the team's manager will put the Cubs back on the level of a being perennial contender in the National League. ESPN seems to believe so as they announced that the Cubs' game against the Texas Ranger will be the lid lifter to the 2024 Major League Baseball season.

ESPN announces #Cubs-Rangers will be its exclusive MLB Opening Night broadcast March 28 at Globe Life Field.
The game marks the start of ESPN’s 35th season of MLB coverage.
— Jeff Agrest (@JeffAgrest) November 13, 2023

For Counsell, he told reporters that it was the vision of Cubs' president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer that sold him on the idea of becoming the team's manager.

Craig Counsell: “I don’t know much about the Cubs, but I believe in how Jed sold the vision."https://t.co/6pC174BHJJ
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) November 13, 2023

In the past two off-seasons, Hoyer's vision has led to the team finding their leader on the field in shortstop Dansby Swanson and now their manager in Counsell. As the Cubs are rumored to be preparing for another courtship of free agent Shohei Ohtani, it's a fresh reminder that if Hoyer gets an audience, hit pitch has proven to be successful.

Counsell was also asked about whether or not he had begun the process of contacting current Cubs' players and mentioned that he is being deliberate with his approach because he wants to make sure that he gets that first conversation right.

"Because this has been fast for me, I need to go slow right now." — Counsell

That sure describes him well.
— Brendan Miller (@brendan_cubs) November 13, 2023

That is the right approach for Counsell to have considering the circumstances around his hire. The Cubs' roster entered the off-season with the belief that David Ross would once again be their manager for the 2024 season. Ross, for his shortcomings as a manager, had developed a real connection with most of the Cubs' roster. It will be a balancing act for Counsell as he continues to embark on his journey as the Cubs' manager.

One of the biggest takeaways from Counsell's introductory press conference was his belief that there is a need to stack good decisions.

"Stack little good decisions on top of eachother." — Counsell
— Brendan Miller (@brendan_cubs) November 13, 2023

That would be a direct contradiction of the managing style that Ross had as he would often continue to move forward with a bad decision--sticking with Eric Hosmer/Trey Mancini last season for as long as he did, for example--with the hope it would pay off in the long run.