5 Brewers Manager Replacements If Craig Counsell Doesn't Return In 2024

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The rumors continue to swirl about the future of Craig Counsell in the Brewers dugout. He remains without a contract extension and is willing to wait until the season ends before he discusses his contract with the team.

Counsell is rumored to be willing to walk away from managing, preferring to instead watch both his sons play college baseball. The Brewers obviously would love to keep him, but it's up to Counsell and his willingness to go without a contract into next year may be a strong indicator he's looking to walk away,

It's completely up to Counsell, as Mark Attanasio has noted. If he decides to walk away, the Brewers will be left looking for a new manager. Who could it be. Let's look at some candidates.

Here are five candidates to the Brewers manager in 2024 if Craig Counsell decides to walk away from the job.

Brewers managerial candidate #1: Bench coach Pat Murphy

The most obvious in-house candidate to take over for Counsell if necessary is bench coach Pat Murphy. Murph has been on Counsell's staff since 2016 and was previously the interim manager for the San Diego Padres.

Murphy has loads of coaching experience and is beloved in the clubhouse. He was the head coach at Notre Dame and coached Counsell when he was in college. He was essentially Counsell's mentor.

Murphy was the head coach at Notre Dame from 1988 to 1994, then was the head coach at Arizona State from 1995 to 2009. He became a coach in the Padres system after that, becoming a minor league manager before moving up to the big league coaching staff in 2015. Then Counsell brought him over as his bench coach as he filled out his staff.

Murphy has interviewed for other managerial openings in the past but ultimately has decided to stay with Milwaukee, perhaps knowing that Counsell would eventually walk away to watch his sons play college ball. If the Brewers want continuity after Counsell's potential departure, Murphy would be the best choice for that.

Brewers managerial candidate #2: Mariners bullpen coach Stephen Vogt

I believe in Stephen Vogt! The former Brewers catcher has a big personality, is incredibly smart, and always felt like someone who would eventually become a big league manager someday.

Vogt recently retired and has gone into the coaching ranks, getting his start with the Seattle Mariners as their bullpen and quality control coach. While typically you don't go from being a bullpen coach to the manager's chair, Vogt isn't your typical coach and he doesn't need to move to being a bench coach before becoming a manager. Remember, Craig Counsell wasn't a coach at all from when he retired to when the Brewers installed him as the manager in 2015. He was a special assistant to the GM in the front office.

Stephen Vogt played in 10 big league seasons and he spent a lot of the 2017 season with the Brewers as an important veteran presence on a young team that found themselves in contention. His leadership helped that young core develop and it's that leadership that the Brewers could use if Counsell decides to walk away.

I get the feeling Vogt would be a "player's manager" where players just absolutely love playing for him. Counsell is the same way. Players love him. Vogt can relate to the players easily and even though he'd be a first time manager, things have worked out well with the last first time manager they hired, so it's a very possible avenue.

Brewers managerial candidate #3: Nashville Sounds manager Rick Sweet

Over the years, Rick Sweet has told so many players that their dreams are coming true and they're going to the big leagues. Maybe it's finally time the Brewers told Rick Sweet that he's going to the big leagues.

"Sweetie" has been a minor league manager since 1987 and has been in the Brewers minor league system since 2014, serving as their Triple-A manager every single year, from the Nashville Sounds, to the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, to the San Antonio Missions, back to the Nashville Sounds. He's won five Manager of the Year awards and was named the International League's manager of the year in 2022.

In 2022, Sweet also won the Mike Coolbaugh award in recognition of his "outstanding baseball work ethic, knowledge of the game, and skill in mentoring young players on the field".

The Brewers may well prefer to have Sweet continue to manage their top minor league affiliate, where he's done a tremendous job, but he should at least be in consideration for the big league spot if he wants it. It's a nice gig he has in Triple-A Nashville, but if he wants to get his own call up to the big leagues, this could be his best chance.

Brewers managerial candidate #4: Braves Hitting Coach Kevin Seitzer

A coach with a connection to the Milwaukee Brewers is certainly going to be a positive factor in any potential managerial search. A coach with that connection plus a high level of success makes Kevin Seitzer someone very much worth talking to.

Being the hitting coach of the Atlanta Braves seems a nice gig right now, considering they have one of the most potent offenses we've seen since Murderers' Row a century ago. Kevin Seitzer has that Braves lineup humming like a well oiled machine. The Brewers would certainly love to have their lineup going like that and Seitzer may be the man to do it. Sure, personnel is a part of it and Seitzer is working with some gifted hitters down in Atlanta, but the wrong tutelage can ruin all that and the right tutelage can, well, you see the results they've put up.

Seitzer was a Brewers player from 1992-1996 with a stint in Oakland mixed in between, earning an All Star nod in 1995. He was a .300/.376/.422 hitter with the Crew.

Seitzer first became a hitting coach back in 2007 and has been with the Braves since 2015. He hasn't held any coaching position besides being a hitting coach, and maybe that's where he's best suited, but it's possible he could have the ambition to move up the ranks into the manager's chair.

If he does, the Brewers should absolutely give him a call if Counsell decides to walk away.

Brewers managerial candidate #5: White Sox bench coach Charlie Montoyo

Things are rough on the south side of Chicago. Their team is a disappointment, the GM and team president were just fired, and this is all in manager Pedro Grifol's first year at the helm. For a manager, the GM that hired you getting fired is not good news for your job security.

The next GM of the White Sox is likely going to want to hire his own guy as manager, which means Grifol is out the door and the new guy will want his own staff, which means Charlie Montoyo and the rest are out the door. If I'm a White Sox coach, I'm updating my resume.

The Brewers, if they end up with an opening, could look to bring in the Sox bench coach, Charlie Montoyo. Montoyo has previous experience as a manager, managing the Toronto Blue Jays from 2019-2022. He was fired halfway through last season despite his team being above .500. He then latched on to the White Sox for this season.

If the Brewers end up wanting someone with prior managing experience, Montoyo is a very solid option they could go with. However, he did lose his job because his Blue Jays team seemed to be underachieving, despite their good record. They won 91 games in 2021.

Montoyo would be an outside hire but he has previous connections to the Brewers. Milwaukee drafted Montoyo in the 26th round in the 1986 Draft and then again took him in the 1987 Draft, but up in the 6th round. He then signed and played six seasons in the Brewers farm system, although he never made it to the big leagues in Milwaukee. He got a cup of coffee with the Montreal Expos in 1993, but that's it.

This is all hypothetical based on Craig Counsell potentially leaving his post, but considering he's going to take his decision down to the end of the season and wait out his contract, there appears to be a decent chance Counsell walks away. We could very well see a new Brewers manager in 2024, and these five coaches could be that guy.

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