Cubs' Craig Counsell Caught Red-Handed Fibbing About Time With Brewers

And he hardly could have picked a lamer thing to lie about...

Jul 28, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell looks on during batting practice before game against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

In case you weren't aware, Craig Counsell used to manage the Milwaukee Brewers.

Counsell's about-face from Wisconsin sports hero to big-market supervillain has been a swift one, as the Chicago Cubs made him the highest-paid skipper in the sport before last season. All the Brewers have done since is promote his understudy Pat Murphy to the top job and dominate the Cubs in the division standings two years in a row.

As the Cubs and Brewers square off this week, the two teams are headed in opposite directions. In fact, the Brewers just won so many consecutive games that they were able to treat their fans to free hamburgers, just as Cubs fans are worrying about whether their stars can escape simultaneous slumps at the plate.

This, if you can believe it, is the source of our controversy.

Craig Counsell's claim about George Webb hamburgers debunked

Brewers manager Craig Counsell looks around just before the national anthem during ceremonies prior taking on the Dodgers in Game 1 of the NLCS on Friday night at Miller Park. Mjs Brewers Brewers13 Hoffman 16 Brewers13 73657904 | Mark Hoffman, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

It's a longstanding tradition that Wisconsin hamburger chain George Webb treats customers to free hamburgers when the Brewers win 12 games in a row, dating back to 1940, when the Brewers' name applied to an American Association team rather than a major league franchise.

They've accomplished the feat twice in the last 10 years -- this past week, and in 2018, when Counsell was manager.

On Tuesday, The Athletic's Levi Weaver pointed out the hypocrisy in Counsell's latest comments about the George Webb promotion and his comments when the Brewers unlocked the promotion when he was the manager.

First, Weaver pulled up a Counsell quote from a story published Sunday by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's Emmett Prosser:

“‘Honestly, I’ve never seen a George Webb,’ Counsell said, saying he preferred Kopps.”

But then, Weaver published this excerpt from a story by Eric Chesterton and Adam McCalvy of MLB.com when the Brewers won their 12th game in a row in 2018:

“‘Who knew that we would make it this far,’ Brewers manager Craig Counsell said, ‘and the biggest piece of stress going into this game would be George Webb’s hamburgers?’

Counsell knows the promotion well. His dad worked in the Brewers’ front office during the 1980s, and Counsell was in the stands for the Brewers’ famous Easter Sunday comeback in ’87, which gave them 12 straight victories to begin the season, and sealed free hamburgers for the (populace).

“‘I remember the concept of free hamburgers going back so long, it’s hard to believe that it’s never happened since then,’ Counsell said. ‘I guess it’s a pretty good streak. But it’s something for everybody to talk about for sure, and I mean, free hamburgers is free hamburgers. I know you all will be there.'”

Certainly, it's a low-stakes lie in the grand scheme of things. But Counsell couldn't be much farther from his Wisconsin roots these days, and the Brewers don't need to fire back, because their play on the field has done all the talking.

More MLB: Cubs' Jed Hoyer Makes Brutally Honest Brewers Admission As Division Gap Widens