Did David Ross deserve to get fired? |
Did David Ross deserve to get fired?
The short answer is no, but here’s the long answer. The MLB world is understandably shocked that the Cubs were able to acquire Craig Counsell from the Brewers to be their manager in a stunning move. As surprising as it may be, it is also true that the move gives the Cubs a better chance at winning the World Series today than they had a week ago. This move, of course, also appears to be a twofold announcement to alert the league that the Cubs are back, back to spending in the big pools, making big splashes, and offering big contracts to big-time players. It starts with a record five-year, 40 million dollar contract to Counsell — and is expected to continue all winter with big names in free agency and the trading market. But, not forgotten among Cubs fans is the fact that David Ross is now gone, and Kyle Hendricks is the only name from the 2016 team left with the organization. Many Cubs fans’ first thoughts were that this move was reminiscent of when the Cubs fired Ricky Renteria after just one season in 2014 and pounced on the opportunity to bring Joe Maddon to Chicago — which, of course, resulted in a World Series win. Cubs fans understandably hope that this move, no matter how gut-wrenching, also leads to a Championship. But Renteria was only here for one season. And he was not a former Cub who had legendary contributions to a World Series victory and was handpicked by the front office to lead the next era of Cubs baseball as its manager. But David Ross was that guy. David Ross will forever be remembered for his leadership and his heroics during the Cubs World Series run in 2016. Not only did Ross homer in his final regular season at-bat, he did in his final at-bat ever — fittingly, a crucial home run in game 7. He was justifiably lifted onto other players’ shoulders and carried off into baseball’s sunset on top. However, after a top-3 finish on Dancing with the Stars, Ross was also a solid manager. His first season was in the ever-difficult shortened 2020 season, and he led the Cubs to a division title. Perhaps more impressive, under Ross’ leadership, the Cubs were the only team in MLB to not have a single player or coach test positive for COVID-19 during that season. He was undeniably dealt a pretty tricky hand as well. His first season was an unprecedented time in the world, and his second and third seasons both had massive selloffs at the trade deadline. They would be classified under a rebuild — so obviously, winning was not the priority. 2023 was his first real chance to manage a contender or a team trying to be one. The Cubs underachieved early. They were phenomenal in the middle of the season and collapsed at the end, missing the playoffs. Despite the lack of a postseason for the club, the season should primarily be viewed as a success, and Rossy certainly deserves some credit. Ross was not a perfect manager. He understandably took a lot of flack for giving players like Patrick Wisdom, Trey Mancini, Tucker Barnhart, Eric Hosmer, Edwin Rios, and Luis Torrens over 800 at-bats combined. While some of the time that was unavoidable, there were parts of the season with young players like Matt Mervis, Nelson Velazquez, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Alexander Canario were up with the club and spent time on the bench watching those types of players take their at-bats. Simple lineup decisions and bullpen management were things that many people criticized Ross for. Plus, when the team inevitably ran out of gas in September, Ross took some heat for not giving some of his mainstays more off days before it was too late. According to reports, the Cubs felt like they “left wins on the table,” and some of those could be on Ross’ shoulders. Ross was not the only reason the Cubs didn’t make the playoffs, but it would be foolish not to acknowledge his part in it. Nonetheless, he did a pretty admirable job — and all signs would have pointed to the fact that Ross would’ve had his job for 2024. “This is no knock on Rossy, who I think incredibly highly of,” said Jed Hoyer. “I just felt like Craig is at the very, very top of the game.” It was a bold move. It was a cutthroat move. It was an unexpected move. It was a cruel move. It was a blinding move… It was a good move. “I feel like I have a responsibility to the city, to the fanbase to winning as many games short-term and long-term as I can, and this felt like it checked that box,” Hoyer said. “It was a really hard decision and obviously some very hard conversations that went in with that, but I felt like it was just the right thing to do.” While it could be the right thing to do, that shouldn’t change the fact that it may have been unfair to Ross. He managed well enough to have a job in 2024 (and still may land elsewhere). And although he may not have deserved to get fired, do not let the way his tenure in Chicago ended take away from the legendary contributions he has made to the Cubs organization.
