Former MLB Executive Says David Ross Deserved Better From Cubs

It feels like ages ago, but the Chicago Cubs grabbed headlines at the beginning of the offseason when they shockingly hired Craig Counsell and dismissed their manager David Ross.

This move was seen as a precursor for an aggressive roster overhaul throughout the winter as they made Counsell the highest-paid manager in the history of Major League Baseball.

However, that has not come to fruition and many wonder what the point of dismissing the well-liked Ross was after the front office has not given Counsell more talent to work with.

Despite some of the criticisms that Ross received, he improved the record and NL Central finishes of Chicago every season since 2021. They did make the playoffs in 2020 during his first year on the job, but that was a shortened, 60-game season.

The shocking move came after the manager received the dreaded vote of confidence from the ownership group and front office.

Yet, the Cubs still decided to go in a different direction and Ross is now without a job in 2024.

That has caused former MLB executive Jim Bowden to say he got a raw deal.

"Ross deserved better. And since the firing didn’t happen until Nov. 6, he didn’t have an opportunity to interview for most of this offseason’s managerial openings and instead was left out in the cold," he wrote for The Athletic.

Bowden definitely has a point.

Chicago operated like Ross was going to return in 2024 and made the sudden move to fire him in favor of Counsell.

Now, this is professional sports and it's ultimately a business, but Ross was an important piece on the 2016 World Series team that ended the drought.

Getting treated this way by the Cubs was certainly cutthroat and Bowden thinks it was the wrong way to handle things.