Capture Sports Marketing’s Athletes Doing Good Radiothon with Pat Connaughton – Listen | Donate | Silent Auction
Both the Milwaukee Brewers and Milwaukee Bucks have had their seasons delayed by the coronavirus pandemic, and both their leagues are trying to figure out how to get back to action.
During Capture Sports Marketing’s Athletes Doing Good Radiothon with Pat Connaughton, Brewers manager Craig Counsell told the Bucks guard that he empathizes with what he considers the Bucks’ plight – a harder one than the Brewers, in the Whitefish Bay native’s opinion.
“From our perspective, the Bucks’ situation from a management point is a lot more difficult and challenging,” said Counsell about the Bucks having their season interrupted 17 games before the playoffs.
“The thought of the first game being a playoff game is a really challenging thing to think about.”
The NBA is considering whether to re-start the season at the point where COVID-19 interrupted it, or go straight to an altered playoffs. They are also thinking about holding all remaining games in one empty neutral site, to control the possibility of a spread of the virus.
The Brewers, meanwhile, are waiting for MLB and the MLBPA to agree to a plan for an altered regular season, possibly in empty home stadiums. Their spring training was interrupted, but they had not begun their regular season.
“We’re ramping up to game 1,” said Counsell.
“That affords us a little more time. There’s no good scenarios here, but having not started yet rather than being so far into a great season like the Bucks (is easier.)”
Counsell says that during his front office time, he scouted Connaughton – a fellow Notre Dame alumnus – when he was a student-athlete there in both basketball and baseball.
“I went down and watched Pat pitched a game,” said Counsell.
“Notre Dame was playing Boston College on the south side of Chicago. He pitched a really good game. A good fastball. He was going to throw really, really hard if he kept pitching.”