Craig Counsell gives Brewer fans the ‘it’s not you, it’s me.’

Live look:

‘Nobody tells me it’s them not me, if it’s anybody, it’s me.’

Well, Craig Counsell(out) finally talked with Milwaukee media about his decision to leave his hometown team and join their most hated rival yesterday. The gist of it revolved around him feeling like he needed a ‘new challenge.’ A few things on that:

• I have a question, how dare you?
• Craig Counsell once told the Brewer fan base that it was his ‘responsibility’ to bring a title back to Milwaukee. 7 years and 1 trip to the NLCS later:

• The fact that he phrased it like that, knowing that he never accomplished the ultimate goal in Milwaukee, means that what we wrote about yesterday is probably true: There IS a disconnect between ownership and management. If you need a ‘new challenge’ after not successfully completing your first challenge, that means you don’t think the first challenge is achievable any longer. You’ve gone as far as you can go. In this instance, that would be Game 7 of the NLCS.

Now, we still don’t really know if Attanasio was offered the chance to match the Cubs offer, but based on Counsell’s comments yesterday, I don’t think that would have mattered. Even if Attanasio would have said, ‘fine, here’s $8 million per year,’ Counsell was gone. This is pure speculation on my part, but my guess is that Craig ultimately wanted the money, but he also wanted guarantees that the approach to acquiring talent, signing free agents, etc. was going to be different. Attanasio probably could have offered him the same money the Cubs did, but what he couldn’t offer is a franchise that is going to be in the mix for players like Shohei Ohtani or Juan Soto.

I want to reiterate at this point that I am still mad at Counsell, even though I’m understanding his decision as it sinks in more. Like in the video we posted from 2016 on yesterday’s blog, don’t tell me you’re ‘one of us,’ and then go to the Cubs. I (mostly) get that coaches and players view sports as a business and fans are the only ones with emotional attachments to a franchise. But when you SELL yourself as someone who is not only a coach, but a person with that same emotional attachment, you can’t do what Craig did on Monday. He got $8 million per season from the Cubs, but the reports are that the Mets offered $7 million per season. Certainly he wasn’t going to accept $5.5 from the Brewers over $8 million from the Cubs, but he COULD have taken $1 million less per year and preserved his legacy in his hometown*.

Anyway, the only path I see for Attanasio and the Brewers now is to go full scorned lover. Work out, get hot, make money, etc. Or in this case: Spend big money on free agents, swing trades, and field the team that Craig would have wanted just to spite him for leaving.

*I saw some debate on Twitter about whether or not we should boo Craig when he returns to Am Fam Field this season. The answer is a resounding YES. Maybe he made the correct decision for himself, maybe it was more on Attanasio than him, that’s fine, but he needs to be booed out of the building upon his return. A think, lusty boo.

PS: The more I think about the, ‘could the Brewers leave town,’ topic, the more concerned I get. I know I said I only went from 0% to 5% in yesterday’s blog, but I think I’m more like 15% right now. This franchise has made some OBVIOUS cost cutting moves in the last few seasons (namely trading Josh Hader while leading the division in 2022). Stearns abruptly leaves, Counsell turns heel and goes to a hated rival a year later. The stadium repair/enhancement package is in flux, and the lease with Am Fam Field ends in 2030. We’re likely entering a ‘soft rebuild’ as a franchise, which means attendance is going to be down for a few years. It could be pretty easy for Attanasio in 2027 to say something to the effect of, ‘well attendance has been down, we still don’t have a plan to repair the facility, my hands are tied.’

Double PS: Mark Attanansio is also chairing the MLB committee that is determining whether or not the Oakland A’s are leaving Oakland. He’s going to get a front row seat to the process.

Triple PS: 20% concerned.