CHICAGO — One day last fall, after a disappointing season without playoff baseball, Cubs manager Craig Counsell met with Nico Hoerner and Ian Happ in Wrigley Field’s home dugout, brainstorming ideas about how to make that workspace flow better.
This concept had been an ongoing conversation for Hoerner and Happ, two homegrown players with the institutional knowledge that came from being around members of the last great Cubs team. After observing some monumental figures in franchise history — and seeing the city’s reaction to the 2016 World Series champions — they felt a certain sense of responsibility.
Joining Counsell, Hoerner and Happ in the dugout that day were two longtime Cubs officials known for their responsiveness and attention to detail: Vijay Tekchandani, the director of team travel and clubhouse operations, and Danny Mueller, the home clubhouse and equipment manager. Even after the completion of a Wrigleyville project that cost around $1 billion, some elements felt missing.
In preserving an iconic ballpark that opened in 1914, the Cubs moved their dugout farther from the action at home plate. While it no longer felt as cramped, accommodating a growing legion of coaches and trainers, the layout further segmented the various groups within a modern baseball team.
The players wanted to address those unintended consequences.
“When people talk about how the dugout used to be, before there was any of the renovations, no one ever said it was nice or fancy,” Hoerner said. “But there were always fond memories of togetherness, and how people were just forced into a small space together.
“That kind of bred camaraderie – and probably other things – but in a way that people were pretty fond of. With the renovations, everything has been done so well at Wrigley, but sometimes you have to be intentional with spaces to promote the things that you want. Wrigley’s a unique space. There’s always going to be some funkiness to it. But we just wanted to clear out some of the divides.”
In Counsell, the players found a somewhat unlikely ally to help push for those changes. The manager’s serious image is projected through all those reaction shots in the dugout, where he can sometimes look uptight on TV. From afar, he could be perceived as an outsider who spent several formative parts of his life affiliated with the Milwaukee Brewers, uninterested in the previous inner workings of the Friendly Confines.
Counsell’s demeanor is often imposing, but it doesn’t paint the full picture of the Chicago manager. (Michael Reaves / Getty Images)
In hiring Counsell away from his hometown team and firing David Ross, the Cubs were not necessarily getting an analytics whiz to update their R&D models, structure the lineup and push bullpen buttons. The size of the investment – Counsell signed a five-year, $40 million contract after the 2023 season – showed he would have wide-ranging influence.
Though decisions are guided by numbers, Counsell still goes by feel, drawing upon the thousands of games he’s experienced in a major-league uniform. This data-obsessed manager with an accounting degree from Notre Dame is also into feng shui.
To improve the sight lines and in-game communication this season, the Cubs removed a bench area near the front of the dugout, added an extra step to the platform and redesigned the racks where players keep their bats and helmets. The overall idea was to better connect players, pitchers, coaches and staffers, rather than leaving it as if they were occupying different rooms in an expansive dugout.
“If you need to look at the iPad for a second,” Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson said, “you can sit down on the bench and be on the iPad, but also still have a clue of what’s going on.”
The subtle remodeling of the dugout is not the reason why Wrigley Field will be hosting a National League Wild Card Series this week. Rather, it illustrates how the Cubs made it to Tuesday afternoon’s matchup against the San Diego Padres, with a constant focus on the little things.
“It’s not helping us win games,” Counsell said with a chuckle, “but it’s been fine.”
The clutter bothered Counsell during his first year on the job. The Cubs had cycled through so many hitting coaches since the new Wrigley Field clubhouse opened in 2016 that the stuff kept accumulating around the indoor batting cage.
Fastidious by nature, Counsell, 55, still looks like a player with his dark, close-cropped hair and lean physique. The manager wanted to get rid of the old equipment and streamline the work stations where players study video. Hoerner described it as “a higher standard of keeping things clean and orderly and professional,” in a way that “creates the best space possible for us to just focus on what matters, which is playing and being together.”
As part of last year’s redesign, Counsell concurred with another idea that players had floated, removing the bulky countertops and clunky couches in the middle of the locker room. That dense concentration of furniture blocked the views between certain lockers and spatially divided the room.
Again, the Cubs are not back in the playoffs for the first time since 2020 because they have new end tables, leather chairs and different couches in the middle of their clubhouse. It’s more symbolic of a team that treated a season-opening trip to Japan as a unique and valuable bonding experience. It’s reflective for a group of baseball gym rats who enjoy breaking down opponents and searching for any hidden edge.
As Counsell knows, it’s always about the players, and the Cubs have more talent and cohesiveness than the roster that won 83 games last year.
“He understands that camaraderie and togetherness are essential to a successful group,” Hoerner said. “It’s one of the very first things he emphasizes from the first day of the season. He also emphasizes that it’s our team and it’s for us to create. He’s not one to – good or bad – force a culture on a group.
“He understands it has to come organically, and from us. But I think he wants to give us every opportunity to do that. So if by creating a space that promotes that better, then he’s going to be all-in.”
That feel comes in different forms. Before Pete Crow-Armstrong blossomed into an All-Star center fielder, Counsell recognized last year that the rookie was around the same age as his two sons, Brady and Jack, a reminder to stay patient.
Outfielder Kyle Tucker, shown using an iPad, is also able to engage with what’s happening on the field. (Michael Reaves / Getty Images)
As a role player on two World Series-winning teams – the 1997 Florida Marlins and 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks – Counsell learned how to work with some big personalities and remember that each season is a marathon.
Once an influential figure within the Major League Baseball Players Association, Counsell also saw the other side of the business as a special assistant in Milwaukee’s front office. Relievers appreciate how Counsell keeps their health at the forefront of every decision while still planning for October.
“They have their little sheet of when we’re supposed to be in there,” said reliever Drew Pomeranz, who also pitched for Counsell in Milwaukee. “It’s not always perfect, but for the most part, they’re trying to put us into the situations where we’re most likely to succeed.
“They do a really good job of not pushing us too much. They give us days (off) when we need them. Even if you don’t tell them you’re down, they’re still looking for a way. They might still give you a day just because it’s a long year and we need to stay sharp.”
Confident in his abilities and comfortable with awkward silence, Counsell is constantly asking questions and gathering information. From the helmet rack to the clubhouse furniture to the computer set-up by the batting cage, no detail is too small.
“He’s very straightforward,” president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said. “He’s not a rah-rah guy, but he brings a real steady, consistent intelligence to the job every single day. His decision-making is very clear and obvious. That allows players to know how they’re going to be used, and lets them know what to expect. There’s not a lot of inconsistency – or any inconsistency – with that. That puts the players in the best mindset.”
Playoff baseball is inherently unpredictable. Between the sun, the wind off Lake Michigan and the shadows forming during day games, Wrigley Field takes that randomness to another level.
That energy can suddenly surge, shift or disappear. Given how well the Padres perform in front of their sellout crowds at Petco Park – and the heightened sense of urgency in a best-of-three series – the Cubs wanted this home-field advantage.
“Each organization kind of has its own DNA,” Counsell said. “That’s everything – the park, the dugout, whatever. My thought is always: Who’s our group? What do these players need? What does our front office and franchise need? You try to figure that out and make the best decisions in that vein.
“From that perspective, I like where we’re at. I like how this group responded to what we thought was important this year. They really grabbed onto that. That’s one of the reasons why we’re here today.”
and just like that, postseason baseball, @Cubs. pic.twitter.com/W2HjTtyekM
— Wrigley Field (@ofcwrigleyfield) September 29, 2025
Counsell stressed three traits in his messaging to the team. The Cubs are athletic, instinctual and experienced, qualities that are magnified underneath the playoff spotlight.
After taking a more observational approach during his first year on the North Side, Counsell made some changes to his coaching staff and turned base running into a central focus. The Cubs needed to be able to manufacture runs in cold weather, and as Wrigley Field kept trending toward being one of the worst offensive environments in the majors.
The pitchers had to trust their stuff and pound the strike zone, using Chicago’s elements to their advantage while allowing Gold Glove defenders to make plays all over the field. Instead of using the extra day games as an excuse, Counsell came to believe that the quirky schedule forced players to solidify their routines and stay disciplined.
Now the TV cameras at Wrigley Field will be zooming in on Counsell, standing at his spot near the dugout railing, calculating the risks and processing the gut decisions that define managers in the playoffs.
“The tricky part about this place is it changes,” Counsell said, “and I have to be quick enough to change when I feel like things change.”
(Top photo: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images)
