Craig Counsell, the Mets’ top managerial candidate, was bound for New York on Thursday for his interview with the team, The Post learned.
New Mets baseball president David Stearns has targeted the accomplished Counsell, his only manager in Milwaukee, to replace Buck Showalter in the Mets dugout and Counsell has an interview scheduled with the team over the next day or two.
The Mets would be expected to be the highest bidder for Counsell, but they have to overcome the home-city advantage of Milwaukee, the city where Counsell was raised and resides.
Sources told The Post recently that Counsell is “serious” about the Mets, as he and wife Michelle love New York, he is interested in raising the salary ceiling for major league managers and has an excellent working relationship with Stearns, for whom he worked seven years in Milwaukee.
Some around the game believe the Mets have an excellent chance as there’s a belief among a few that he would have already re-signed in Milwaukee if that was his intention.
However, that isn’t necessarily the case; while he deferred contract talks this spring with the Brewers, he may just prefer to weigh his considerable options.
Counsell, who interviewed with the Guardians earlier in the week, will have multiple offers as one of baseball’s best free-agent managers in memory.
The Brewers made Counsell an offer soon after their season ended with a wild-card round defeat to the surprising Diamondbacks.
The Guardians are the dark horse in this race, but they did pay manager Terry Francona the highest managerial salary this year, at $4.5 million according to sources.
It also can’t be ruled out that a surprise team, perhaps even one with no current opening, could join the derby for one of baseball’s best managers.
Counsell, 53, made $3.5 million this year, which ranked below at least Francona, who retired, plus Bruce Bochy (about $4 million plus perks) and Showalter ($3.75 million), and perhaps one or two others.
Under Counsell the Brewers have exhibited a knack for winning close games and getting the most out of a payroll that often ranks about 20th of the 30 MLB teams.
Counsell, who won two World Series rings as a player (1997 Marlins, 2001 Diamondbacks), may believe he has a greater chance to win a World Series with the deep-pocketed Mets.
While the Mets had a very disappointing season in 2023, going 75-87, 17 games behind the 92-win Brewers, they have an improved farm system.
Milwaukee has a top-five system but may not be able to hold onto all of its star players, as three key guys are free agents after 2024 (Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff and Willy Adames).
Counsell joined the Dodgers’ Dave Roberts as one of two managers to post 86-plus wins the past six full seasons (not counting the pandemic year of 2020).
Counsell made the postseason five of the past six seasons, with the only exception being 2022, when the Brewers finished one game out of the playoffs at 86-76.
Overall, Counsell is 707-625 (.531) his nine seasons in Milwaukee for baseball’s smallest-market team.