Craig Counsell took questions from the media on Monday in the visitor’s dugout ahead of his team’s four-game series with the Mets, which was once a possible new home for him.
If things went differently with Mets president David Stearns’ hiring process during the offseason, Counsell, now the Cubs’ manager, could have been sitting in the home clubhouse taking questions alongside his previous boss with the Brewers.
When asked if there was a specific point that Counsell could see himself managing in Queens, he said, “Well, I came here for an interview so that’s a pretty big sign that I was interested, yeah.”
After spending nine years together in Milwaukee, it was no surprise Counsell was one of Stearns’ favorites to join him in New York.
However, tight-lipped Counsell seems likely to continue keeping the details of those conversations and why he ultimately didn’t choose the Mets between himself and Stearns.
“It went great,” he said of the interview with the Mets. “It went great, I enjoyed it. David’s a good friend. So, I enjoyed spending time with him and learning about the organization.
“It was just the right fit for me,” Counsell said about choosing the Cubs. “Everything that I … ended up looking for, it turned out to be the right fit in Chicago.”
Counsell signed a record $40 million contract over five years with the Cubs without asking the Mets to counter the offer.
The manager previously stated he was having “fun” and “feeling challenged” in his new job and that there are no hard feelings between him and Stearns.
“We had dinner before we came out to spring training and we didn’t talk a word about baseball,” Counsell said. “That’s kind of how it is. And it’s all good. David and I and our families are friends. And will be friends. We went through negotiations and it didn’t work out.”