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  "path": "/cubs/2026/05/12/cubs-ted-turner-manager-craig-counsell-moxie",
  "publishedAt": "2026-05-13T03:00:33.889Z",
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  "textContent": "<p>ATLANTA — So, what do you do if the ballclub you own has just lost 16 games in a row?</p><p>If you’re Ted Turner, maverick owner of the Braves and shameless showman, you send your manager, Dave Bristol, on a “scouting trip,” join your team in Pittsburgh and plant yourself in the dugout as manager.</p><p>This happened on May 11, 1977. The old guard was appalled. Braves players were amused when Turner showed up with his cap pulled down low, a cigar in his mouth, uniform pants hiked up to his knees, stirrups on backwards.</p><p>Almost 59 years to the day after Turner named himself manager, and six days after he died at the age of 87, <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs\" >Cubs</a> manager Craig Counsell offered “Captain Outrageous” a figurative tip of the cap.</p><p>“I respect it,” Counsell said. “I mean, I think it’s great. I do. In a lot of ways, I think he probably learned a lot that day.’’</p><p>Naturally, someone suggested to Counsell that it was unlikely Cubs owner Tom Ricketts would be calling him with an offer to fill in for a day.</p><p>“Would be happy to take a day off,” Counsell cracked.</p><p>The Braves lost 2-1 with Turner as their skipper when the Pirates made future Hall of Famer Dave Parker’s third-inning home run off future Hall of Fame Phil Niekro stand up. Citing the “Connie Mack rule,” which states that no one who owns a financial interest in a team can serve as manager, National League president Chub Feeney banned Turner from an encore.</p><p>So Turner took an 0-1 record as manager to his grave. The obituaries tended to focus more on his wins: building a media empire with CNN and the TBS “superstation” that carried Braves games into every market; tabbing the Braves as “America’s team”; winning the America’s Cup as a master yachtsman, and his marriage to Jane Fonda.</p><p>The game of baseball, it appears, didn’t suffer any lasting damage from his managing stint — or stunt.</p><p>The Braves and Cubs lined up on their respective baselines Tuesday for a pregame tribute to Turner and Bobby Cox, the Hall of Fame manager who died Saturday at 84. Life-sized portraits of both men flanked a World Series trophy set on a pedestal in front of home plate, with garlands of flowers in front of each portrait. The Braves will wear No. 6 on a patch on their caps as a tribute to Cox for the rest of the season.</p><p>Longtime Chicago sportswriter and editor Dan McGrath shared an exchange he once had with Cox. He was interviewing him about the post-steroid era when Cox interjected, “Why in hell did the Cubs trade Mark De-Rosa? He was such a good athlete. He could play anywhere on the field and not hurt you. [He] understood he was a bench guy and never complained about playing time. Always kept himself ready. Great in the clubhouse, too. One of the best kids I ever managed.”</p><p>DeRosa spent the first seven seasons of his career in Atlanta as a bench player for Cox. After two seasons with the Rangers, he came to the Cubs, playing six different positions while gaining an every-day spot in the lineup. He had a .289/.373/.451/.824 slash line in two years in Chicago in 2007-08.</p><p>After achieving career bests in home runs (21) and RBI (87), DeRosa was sent to Cleveland for three pitchers: Chris Archer, Jeff Stevens and John Gaub. Archer never pitched for the Cubs, traded to the Rays for pitcher Matt Garza in 2011.</p><bsp-listcarousel class=\"PageListE\" data-module data-column-count=3 data-hide-authors=\"true\" data-hide-categories=\"true\" data-hide-dates=\"true\" data-hide-descriptions=\"true\" data-show-loadmore=\"true\" ><a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"list-c90005\" name=\"list-c90005\"></a><div class=\"PageList-header\" > <div class=\"PageList-header-title-wrap\" > <div class=\"PageList-header-title\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs\" target=\"{borderColor=#dfdfdf, pageNumber=1, titleUrl=https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs, inverseColors=false, footerBgColor=#000000, title=Latest on the Cubs, bodyFont=font-3, showListNumbers=false, imagePositionHorizontal=null, rteBodyFont=font-3, headerBottomBorderColor=#111010, subTitle=null, stickyHeader=true, listTitleColor=#000000, tableCellBorderColor=#ccd1d5, relatedListFont=font-1, hideAuthors=true, tertiaryTextColor=#6c6c6c, buttonHoverTextColor=#ffffff, tableFont=font-1, carouselAutoPlay=false, promoTitleFont=font-2, pagination=[{body=[Next Page], href=?p=2, _template=/link/Link.hbs, contentId=null, pianoSectionSlug=null, target=null}], ctaButtonText=[], primaryTextColor=#2a2a2a, buttonTextColor=#ffffff, linkTextColor=#1a1a1a, hideTitles=false, footerLinkColor=#ffffff, carouselSpeed=null, buttonHoverBgColor=#a91d23, rteHeadingFont=font-1, secondaryColor=#656565, hideCategories=true, _template=/page/list/includes/PageList-header.hbs, font3=Arial, font4=Source-serif-4, ctaUrl=null, hideImage=false, footerLinkHoverColor=#d3242c, _styledTemplate=/page/list/PageListE.hbs, hideAudioPlayback=false, description=[], listColumns234=null, showSecondItemMedia=false, footerTextColor=#ffffff, hideDescriptions=true, headerSecondaryBgColor=#000000, primaryTextColorInverse=#ffffff, titleColor=null, ampLink=null, listHeaderPosition=null, showActionBar=true, pullQuoteIcon=[{image=null, narrowImage=null, _template=/image/Image.hbs, alt=null}], linkHoverColor=#d3242c, buttonBgColor=#d3242c, ctaTarget=null, suppressPagination=false, promoButtonText=null, items=[{type=Image, publishDate=May 11, 2026 07:45 PM, categoryUrl=https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs, timestamp=1778546740000, _styledTemplate=null, media=[{ampLink=null, _styledTemplate=null, _template=/image/Image.hbs, image={src=https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/b0/ae/e9d4e9fd4bc88df7ddaf3e8a0e83/cubs-rangers-baseball-3.jpg, width=3810, height=2540}, alt=Cubs Rangers Baseball, narrowImage={src=https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/b0/ae/e9d4e9fd4bc88df7ddaf3e8a0e83/cubs-rangers-baseball-3.jpg, width=3810, height=2540}}], imageAlignment=null, url=https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs/2026/05/11/cubs-seiya-suzuki-counsels-white-sox-munetaka-murakami-kazuma-okamoto-shohei-ohtani, isFeatured=false, wordCount=1002, target=null, category=[{items=[Cubs]}], primaryMediaType=null, title=Cubs' Seiya Suzuki counsels White Sox' Munetaka Murakami about life in Chicago, ampLink=null, authors=[{bio=[{items=[Chicago Sun-Times sports contributor]}], ampLink=null, _styledTemplate=null, _template=/author/byline/AuthorByline.hbs, authorPageUrl=https://chicago.suntimes.com/gordon-edes, jobTitle=[{items=[Gordon Edes is a sports contributor at the Chicago Sun-Times.]}], media=[{ampLink=null, _styledTemplate=null, _template=/image/Image.hbs, narrowImage={src=https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/8c/3b/a9e4df4442f181af5f9e4e9e5510/image0.jpeg, width=1001, height=1331}, image={src=https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/8c/3b/a9e4df4442f181af5f9e4e9e5510/image0.jpeg, width=1001, height=1331}, alt=Gordon Edes}], name=[{items=[Gordon Edes]}]}], description=[{items=[They’ll meet up again this weekend, when the Cubs travel to Rate Field for the first round of the Crosstown Showdown with the White Sox.]}], anchorId=promo-570000, audio=[], audioDuration=null, _template=/page/promo/PagePromo.hbs}, {type=Image, categoryUrl=https://chicago.suntimes.com/college-sports, description=[{items=[Look, any school can go 100-plus years without a conference championship in baseball. 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url=https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs/2026/05/10/cubs-manager-craig-counsell-alex-bregman-matt-shaw-moises-ballesteros-michael-conforto-ben-brown, primaryMediaType=null, ampLink=null, category=[{items=[Cubs]}], authors=[{bio=[{items=[Chicago Sun-Times sports contributor]}], ampLink=null, _styledTemplate=null, name=[{items=[Gordon Edes]}], _template=/author/byline/AuthorByline.hbs, media=[{ampLink=null, _styledTemplate=null, _template=/image/Image.hbs, narrowImage={src=https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/8c/3b/a9e4df4442f181af5f9e4e9e5510/image0.jpeg, width=1001, height=1331}, image={src=https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/8c/3b/a9e4df4442f181af5f9e4e9e5510/image0.jpeg, width=1001, height=1331}, alt=Gordon Edes}], authorPageUrl=https://chicago.suntimes.com/gordon-edes, jobTitle=[{items=[Gordon Edes is a sports contributor at the Chicago Sun-Times.]}]}], audio=[], anchorId=promo-570002, audioDuration=null, media=[{ampLink=null, _styledTemplate=null, _template=/image/Image.hbs, alt=Chicago Cubs v Texas Rangers, narrowImage={src=https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/ff/e1/cbb7cbe34cc190100a7821f262a3/2275504092.jpg, width=4276, height=2851}, image={src=https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/ff/e1/cbb7cbe34cc190100a7821f262a3/2275504092.jpg, width=4276, height=2851}}], wordCount=665, _template=/page/promo/PagePromo.hbs, description=[{items=[“When they put my name in a headline on an article in ‘The Onion,’ then people read it,’’ Counsell said. “One headline was, ‘Craig Counsell Proven to be Best Player of the Steroid Era.’ ’’]}], publishDate=May 10, 2026 06:03 PM, title=Cubs manager Craig Counsell isn't target for clickbait these days — but he once was}], backgroundColor=null, headerSecondaryTextColor=#ffffff, anchorId=list-c90005, count=13901, listTitleFont=font-2, headlineFont=font-1, promoDescriptionFont=font-3, primaryColor=#d3242c, slimFooter=false, hideHeadline=false, hideDates=true, headerBorderColor=#e9e9e9, ratingCardFont=font-1, titleTarget=null, tableCaptionColor=#626262, pageCount=4634, mobileCarousel=false, tableEvenRowsBgColor=#f9f8f3, containerTitleFont=font-2, listBorderColor=#dfdfdf, defaultArticleLeadStyle=standard, _parentFiles=[/page/list/includes/PageList-header.hbs]}\">Latest on the Cubs</a> </div> </div> </div> <div class=\"PageListE-items\"> <div class=\"PageListE-items-item\"> <div class=\"PagePromoB\"data-align-top> <div class=\"PagePromo-media\"><a class=\"Link\" aria-label=\"Cubs' Seiya Suzuki counsels White Sox' Munetaka Murakami about life in Chicago\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs/2026/05/11/cubs-seiya-suzuki-counsels-white-sox-munetaka-murakami-kazuma-okamoto-shohei-ohtani\" ><picture data-crop=\"medium-4x3\"> <source type=\"image/webp\" width=\"490\" height=\"328\" 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</picture> </a></div> <div class=\"PagePromoB-content\"> <div class=\"PagePromo-category\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs\" >Cubs</a> </div> <div class=\"PagePromo-title\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs/2026/05/11/cubs-seiya-suzuki-counsels-white-sox-munetaka-murakami-kazuma-okamoto-shohei-ohtani\" >Cubs' Seiya Suzuki counsels White Sox' Munetaka Murakami about life in Chicago</a> </div> <div class=\"PagePromo-description\">They’ll meet up again this weekend, when the Cubs travel to Rate Field for the first round of the Crosstown Showdown with the White Sox.</div> <div class=\"PagePromo-byline\"><div class=\"PagePromo-date\"> <bsp-timestamp data-timestamp=1778546740000 data-promo=\"true\"> <template data-date-tpl>[month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone]</template> <span data-date> </span> </bsp-timestamp><span class=\"dot\"></span></div> <div class=\"PagePromo-author\"> <span>By </span><strong><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/gordon-edes\" >Gordon Edes </a></strong> </div> <div class=\"PagePromo-readingTime\"> <span class=\"dot-divider\"></span> <svg class=\"PagePromo-readingTime-icon\"> <use xlink:href=\"#icon-clock-reading\"></use> </svg> <span class=\"PagePromo-readingTime-text\"> <bsp-time-to-read data-article-word-count=\"1002\"></bsp-time-to-read> read </span> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class=\"PageListE-items-item\"> <div class=\"PagePromoB\"data-align-top> <div class=\"PagePromo-media\"><a class=\"Link\" aria-label=\"No drought about it: It's the U of C Maroons' year\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/college-sports/2026/05/11/chicago-maroons-baseball-ncaa-tournament-erik-rindner-john-butka-braden-jirovec\" ><picture data-crop=\"medium-4x3\"> <source type=\"image/webp\" width=\"490\" height=\"328\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5146c20/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2039x1365+0+0/resize/490x328!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fb2%2F58%2F84efdfd849cfa047dc97cd72fed6%2Fuofc.jpg\"/> <source width=\"490\" height=\"328\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c7c5cee/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2039x1365+0+0/resize/490x328!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fb2%2F58%2F84efdfd849cfa047dc97cd72fed6%2Fuofc.jpg\"/> <img class=\"Image\" alt=\"UofC.jpg\" width=\"490\" height=\"328\" src=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c7c5cee/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2039x1365+0+0/resize/490x328!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fb2%2F58%2F84efdfd849cfa047dc97cd72fed6%2Fuofc.jpg\"> </picture> </a></div> <div class=\"PagePromoB-content\"> <div 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That streak is over in Hyde Park, where the Division III Maroons are gearing up for the NCAA Tournament.</div> <div class=\"PagePromo-byline\"><div class=\"PagePromo-date\"> <bsp-timestamp data-timestamp=1778528647000 data-promo=\"true\"> <template data-date-tpl>[month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone]</template> <span data-date> </span> </bsp-timestamp><span class=\"dot\"></span></div> <div class=\"PagePromo-author\"> <span>By </span><strong><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/authors/steve-greenberg\" >Steve Greenberg </a></strong> </div> <div class=\"PagePromo-readingTime\"> <span class=\"dot-divider\"></span> <svg class=\"PagePromo-readingTime-icon\"> <use xlink:href=\"#icon-clock-reading\"></use> </svg> <span class=\"PagePromo-readingTime-text\"> <bsp-time-to-read data-article-word-count=\"1015\"></bsp-time-to-read> read </span> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class=\"PageListE-items-item\"> <div class=\"PagePromoB\"data-align-top> <div class=\"PagePromo-media\"><a class=\"Link\" aria-label=\"Cubs manager Craig Counsell isn't target for clickbait these days — but he once was\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs/2026/05/10/cubs-manager-craig-counsell-alex-bregman-matt-shaw-moises-ballesteros-michael-conforto-ben-brown\" ><picture data-crop=\"medium-4x3\"> <source type=\"image/webp\" width=\"490\" height=\"328\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/08c8e91/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4259x2851+8+0/resize/490x328!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fff%2Fe1%2Fcbb7cbe34cc190100a7821f262a3%2F2275504092.jpg\"/> <source width=\"490\" height=\"328\" srcset=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9410443/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4259x2851+8+0/resize/490x328!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fff%2Fe1%2Fcbb7cbe34cc190100a7821f262a3%2F2275504092.jpg\"/> <img class=\"Image\" alt=\"Chicago Cubs v Texas Rangers\" width=\"490\" height=\"328\" src=\"https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9410443/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4259x2851+8+0/resize/490x328!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fff%2Fe1%2Fcbb7cbe34cc190100a7821f262a3%2F2275504092.jpg\"> </picture> </a></div> <div class=\"PagePromoB-content\"> <div class=\"PagePromo-category\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs\" >Cubs</a> </div> <div class=\"PagePromo-title\"> <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs/2026/05/10/cubs-manager-craig-counsell-alex-bregman-matt-shaw-moises-ballesteros-michael-conforto-ben-brown\" >Cubs manager Craig Counsell isn't target for clickbait these days — but he once was</a> </div> <div class=\"PagePromo-description\">“When they put my name in a headline on an article in ‘The Onion,’ then people read it,’’ Counsell said. “One headline was, ‘Craig Counsell Proven to be Best Player of the Steroid Era.’ ’’</div> <div class=\"PagePromo-byline\"><div class=\"PagePromo-date\"> <bsp-timestamp data-timestamp=1778454192000 data-promo=\"true\"> <template data-date-tpl>[month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone]</template> <span data-date> </span> </bsp-timestamp><span class=\"dot\"></span></div> <div class=\"PagePromo-author\"> <span>By </span><strong><a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://chicago.suntimes.com/gordon-edes\" >Gordon Edes </a></strong> </div> <div class=\"PagePromo-readingTime\"> <span class=\"dot-divider\"></span> <svg class=\"PagePromo-readingTime-icon\"> <use xlink:href=\"#icon-clock-reading\"></use> </svg> <span class=\"PagePromo-readingTime-text\"> <bsp-time-to-read data-article-word-count=\"665\"></bsp-time-to-read> read </span> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </bsp-listcarousel><p></p>",
  "title": "As Cubs join salute to Ted Turner, manager Craig Counsell appreciates the moxie of mogul’s day in dugout",
  "updatedAt": "2026-05-13T03:00:33.889Z"
}