Chairman Tom Ricketts addresses the Cubs’ managerial shift from David Ross to Craig Counsell

MESA, Ariz. – Before the hubbub and ceremony of the first day of full squad spring training workouts Monday, Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts took the coaching staff out to dinner the night before.

“I haven’t spent much time with Tom,” new manager Craig Counsell said. “So Just to get to spend some time with him and really understand him and his family’s history a little better was a lot of fun for me.”

Counsell’s hiring process was too condensed for him to get to know the team owners before signing on. But Ricketts was one of the few who knew of president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer’s plan to pursue Counsell before the team fired sitting manager David Ross.

“I thought David Ross was a very, very good manager for us,” Ricketts said Monday. “I think he had a good year last year. And we expected to go forward with him when the season ended.”

Ricketts even said Ross was “our guy” during the last series of the season. Coincidentally, that series was in Milwaukee, against Counsell’s Brewers.

The Cubs didn’t interview Counsell in October, when he was still under contact with the Brewers. That would have required permission from their division rival. But when Counsell hadn’t signed anywhere by Nov. 1, the Cubs saw their opening.

“Jed came to me with the idea that we should probably talk to him,” Ricketts said. “Craig is considered one of the best managers in baseball, and you’re always trying to look to get better at every position, including manager. So when Jed approached me, I was very much in favor of pursuing those discussions. And we’re really happy that it turned out the way it did.”

All-Star Game incoming?

In his spring training news conference in Florida last week, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred told reporters that the Cubs and Blue Jays are candidates to host the All-Star Games in 2027 and 2028.

“We’re trying to get an All-Star Game at some point, pretty soon here,” Ricketts said Monday. “There’s a few things we have to work out with the city. And we’ve gotten snagged, but I think we’re getting closer. And we’ll hopefully know more pretty soon. But it’s not as simple as it looks. And a lot of teams want the All-Star Games, they are big economic drivers for the city, but not easy to get.”

Most of the concerns they have to iron out with the city are security-related, Ricketts confirmed.

The Cubs last hosted the All-Star Game in 1990.

Commissioner on deck

Manfred also announced that he will be stepping down when his current term ends in January 2029. Even before Manfred’s announcement, former Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein’s name had been floated around baseball circles as a potential successor to Manfred.

Epstein, who recently joined the Fenway Sports Group as a part owner and senior advisor, has not commented. And Ricketts declined to delve into the subject on Monday.

“I think Rob has done a really good job,” Ricketts said. “But we’ve got a lot of time to think about the future.”