Chicago Cubs: Craig Counsell slammed for Matthew Boyd miscalculation

The Chicago Cubs, on Monday, blew a prime opportunity to beat the division rival Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field.

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A Labor Day win may not have meant a whole lot in the race for the NL Central Division top spot—the Cubs still would’ve been six games behind with precious little time left in the regular season. But beating the Brewers would’ve been a major point of pride and a confidence booster. It also would’ve taken the pressure off of them on Wednesday, when ace phenom Jacob Misiorowski starts with a chip on his shoulder after a bad outing against the Cubs last week.

For a while it looked like the Cubs would get that Labor Day win.

Matthew Boyd was cooking through 7 innings, allowing just one run. But then, in the eighth inning, the wheels fell off the cart and Boyd gave up a leadoff walk and a double before relievers Ryan Zeferjahn and Jacob Webb allowed the Brewers to go from a 2-1 deficit to a 4-2 lead.

In the ninth, Chicago was only able to muster one run—from a solo homer by Pete Crow-Armstrong—before the book was closed on a 4-3 loss.

Counsell is roasted

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After the game, critics let loose with complaints over how manager Craig Counsell managed his pitchers in the eighth inning.

People are questioning why Boyd was allowed to come out for the eighth. And they’re really questioning why he was allowed to stay in the game after walking the lefty Garrett Mitchell and showing clear signs that his gas tank was empty. The next batter, the right-handed Joey Ortiz, would then crush a double to put runners on second and third with no outs.

Counsell then finally came out and Zeferjahn was brought into an almost impossible situation.

A mental block?

Matthew Trueblood of North Side Baseball laid the criticism on thick after the game, pretty much flat-out saying that Counsell has a mental block when it comes to coaching against his former team:

“Counsell…has managed like he’s terrified of his own instincts when facing the Brewers over the last two seasons, and he made another mistake born of that hesitation. Despite Boyd preparing to face Garrett Mitchell and Joey Ortiz for the third time and try to get an out in the eighth for the first time all year, Counsell left him in, eschewing (for the moment) Zeferjahn.

That’s not who Counsell is, as a manager. He’s dealt with a shaky bullpen all season, and Zeferjahn is as suspect as anyone the team has relied on in high-leverage situations during that time, but he’s also pitched well lately. He would have offered a vastly different look than Boyd to Mitchell and Ortiz (or, if it came to that, pinch-hitter Jake Bauers), who had already seen the tiring veteran southpaw twice. This is simple stuff. No version of Counsell that existed before he came to Chicago—and, really, no version of him who has ever managed against any team other than the Brewers—sends out his starter to pitch in that situation, but when facing his former team and his former mentor, Counsell hasn’t been himself.”

Counsell has been lauded throughout his career for how well he handles his pitchers. And this season, with all of the injuries and setbacks, he’s done some magical stuff in keeping the Cubs’ staff productive.

But Monday was a very bad day for the Cubs’ skipper. The team can’t afford to have too many more of those bad Counsell days if they want to do something in the playoffs.

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