You could say Christian Yelich is undaunted facing his old manager.
“It’s not like ‘Couns’ has exotic blitz packages or has a good play-action pass game or anything like that that’s going to make it difficult on us,” Yelich joked Oct. 3 as players met the media in advance of the National League Division Series between the Cubs and Brewers. “I have a lot of respect for him. He’s great at what he does. But we’re not going to worry about the two-high safety look from Couns.”
Yelich is one of nine Brewers players likely to make the NLDS roster who played for Counsell in 2023, his last year with Milwaukee, and it’s 10 players counting injured starter Brandon Woodruff.
“Every Cubs-Brewers game is always pretty intense, and the fans get involved, and it’s always a playoff-like atmosphere, but I’m sure it’s going to be even better, for sure,” Woodruff said. “That part of it, last year, Couns coming back for the first time, we’re kind of past that now. It’s just back to baseball.”
Since Counsell made the shocking decision to leave for the Cubs job before the 2024 season, all former bench coach Pat Murphy has done is lead the team to two division titles, with a 93-win season and a franchise-record 97-win campaign.
“They’re different personalities I think,” Yelich said. “When Couns was here, they were a good complement of each other. Couns is pretty cerebral about the game and more reserved, calm demeanor. And Murph is going to tell you exactly what he’s thinking or feeling at the time. He’s not always going to say the thing that’s politically correct or overly concerned about how people feel about it, and that’s just who they are. They’re both successful in their own ways. People are different, managers are different and they both do a great job at what they do.”
Murphy may well be on his way to his second NL manager of the year award, an honor Counsell never won despite racking up more wins than any Brewers manager in franchise history, good for four second-place finishes. And now Counsell is on the opposite side for the first playoff battle between the two natural rivals.
“I think Murph is a little more hands on with controlling the game,” outfielder Sal Frelick said. “Couns would have a little more leniency, expecting you to get the job done, whichever way you wanted to do. Where Murph might be telling you exactly how he wants the job done. But similar, it wasn’t this big culture switch, just a different guy on the top step.”
Counsell, who still lives in the Milwaukee area, has been showered with a cascade of boos from jilted Brewers fans every time he returns to American Family Field, and we can expect more.
“I was laughing in the moment, but I kind of know how special he is,” starter Freddy Peralta said of the first time he heard the boos from Brewers fans for Counsell. “He’s a great man. He’s a great manager. He knows that I love him. But at the same time, after all those years here, when you come back, that’s what you get? But it is what it is. It’s part of the game. It’s a feeling for the fans that’s going to happen, and tomorrow it’s probably going to happen again. Probably louder than normal.”
Brewers owner Mark Attanasio kept his comments short on the Counsell topic Oct. 3, clarifying that he never said he expressed feeling “burned” by Counsell’s departure.
“He did an unbelievable job here for nine seasons,” Attanasio said. “I talked about losing the community, and I think this community is really special in so many ways. Everybody has to do what they have to do for themselves and their family.”
Players downplayed the degradation of the home-field advantage with Cubs fans likely to make their voices heard during the series.
“They’re an hour away, right?” Frelick said. “It happens. I assume when the Yankees play the Mets, it’s a pretty 50/50 split. I know it is when the Red Sox play the Yankees. That’s just part of a big rivalry, it doesn’t bother me. I don’t want to speak for anyone else, but it’s just a cool, fun environment.”
“There will be mixed crowds, I’m sure,” Yelich said. “In my opinion, that’s just going to add to the atmosphere. I don’t think it’s annoying at all, and it doesn’t really affect our team.
“It’s two passionate fan bases that are familiar with each other over the years,” Yelich added. “We’ve had some big games against each other, and it’s surprising that we haven’t really met in the postseason before. But I had a feeling it would shape up this way at some point this season. They’re a great team, we’re a good team, we played each other really close throughout the season, and I’d anticipate a lot of the same here in the postseason. It’ll be two fun environments here and at Wrigley.”