👋 Good morning!
Anybody watch last night’s mental implosion from the Edmonton Oilers?
I’ve never seen anything like that in a championship series. The Oilers committed 75 minutes worth of penalties in the third period alone, including four 10-minute misconducts.
There’s frustration, and then there’s whatever that was from Edmonton. Every whistle seemed to lead to another player headed down the tunnel for an early shower. What does that locker room even look like after the game?
Panthers in five.
Cubs? Walked off.
Counsell? Ejected…again.
Cubs manager Craig Counsell was ejected for the second time in as many days on Monday night as the Cubs lost their series opener to the Phillies in 11 innings, 4-3.
Last night’s ejection happened after Counsell argued for runner interference with home plate umpire Stu Scheurwater in the ninth inning. Counsell’s plea for Scheurwater to seek the opinion of the other umpires on the field was unsuccessful.
On the play, Phillies 3B Otto Kemp hit a spinning dribbler that catcher Carson Kelly fielded late before throwing to first base. Though Kemp was clearly in the infield grass on his way down the baseline, Scheurwater argued that the baserunner’s path didn’t impact the outcome of the play, as Michael Busch was still able to receive Kelly’s throw.
THE DOMINO EFFECT: Counsell’s ejection left bench coach Ryan Flaherty in charge at a pivotal point in the Cubs’ loss. Flaherty lost a challenge later in the ninth inning on a close double play, then opted to use Daniel Palencia for a second inning of relief in the 11th. Palencia allowed four hits in the inning, including two bunt singles, without recording an out.
The ejection was Counsell’s second of the season, fifth as Cubs manager, and No. 33 in 1,560 games managed. Counsell was ejected for the first time in 2025 on Sunday while ridiculing home plate umpire Derek Thomas’s quick hook of Nico Hoerner, who’d told Thomas after a called-third strike, “You’re having a really bad day so far.”
Was last night’s ejection warranted? It didn’t look like it, but I’m not a great lip-reader, either. It’s also the second game in a row the Cubs have been victimized by a seemingly out-of-nowhere ejection.
Counsell’s discussion with Scheurwater didn’t appear to be overly animated, and the home plate ump had already botched a call behind the plate when Pete Crow-Armstrong was ruled to have struck out swinging on a ball that was clearly fouled.
I hate to be that guy, but he, at the very least, owed Counsell his attention at that point. However, Scheurwater wanted nothing to do with the argument and ran Counsell instead.
For what it’s worth, I didn’t have an issue with Scheurwater’s ruling, and Kemp would’ve been safe had he run in the baseline. Still, tossing Counsell in the ninth inning of a tie game for making a reasonable argument felt a little harsh.
🏀 Big ALLCITY News! 🏀
ALLCITY is thrilled to announce a new partnership with Quita Loves Sports, one of the leading voices covering the WNBA on YouTube! Known for her flagship show “Quita In The Morning,” Quita brings sharp insights and unmatched passion to women's basketball coverage. She’s also a big Chicago sports fan, which we love at CHGO.
As the game continues to grow, ALLCITY is proud to align with a creator who shares our mission to connect with fans across our cities in a meaningful way. Welcome to the ALLCITY family, Quita!
OFFSEASON FINALE: The Bears wrap up offseason activities on Wednesday at Halas Hall. The final session of OTAs, which began yesterday, will more closely resemble rookie minicamp. Only rookies and players close to their rookie seasons who could use the extra team workouts will be in attendance. Then, after Wednesday, nothing doing until training camp begins in July.
SHOW REMINDER: Hoge, Carm, and I will be in Lake Forest for OTAs this afternoon, so today’s CHGO Bears show will be live at 4 p.m.
DOUBLE-A ✈️ MLB: Reliever Grant Taylor is movin’ on up. Taylor, 23, will skip Triple-A Charlotte and join the White Sox in Houston ahead of tonight’s series opener against the Astros. In 15 games with the Birmingham Barons this year, Taylor, the Sox’s No. 6 prospect (per MLB.com’s rankings), owns a 1.01 ERA over 26.2 IP.
The Two-Time Defending Champs are 4-0
It in fact was an ideal night to go 1-0
— #Mario Tirabassi (#@Mario_Tirabassi)
2:05 AM • Jun 10, 2025
📺 CHGO Fire
1:45 on YouTube
📺 CHGO Blackhawks
2:00 on YouTube
📺 CHGO Bulls
4:00 on YouTube
📺 CHGO Bears
4:00 on YouTube
⚾️ Cubs @ Phillies
5:45 on Marquee
⚾️ White Sox @ Astros
7:10 on CHSN
📺 CHGO Cubs
POSTGAME on CHGO Cubs YT
📺 CHGO White Sox
POSTGAME on YouTube
Talk to you tomorrow!
And until then, keep your feet in the ground and keep reaching for the stars.
