Craig Counsell’s 50th birthday was every bit dreamy, with in-flight cupcakes as the team traveled from Minneapolis to Pittsburgh. But his 56th birthday? Not so much…
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Right there at T-Mobile Park, the manager found himself barking at Brennan Miller after witnessing the umpire call a balk on Matthew Boyd, something that’s highly unusual for the pickoff artist.
Counsell was convinced the call was wrong. He pointed out from the third-base dugout that it was never a balk for the last seven years. For the team, the frustration deepened once the umpire threw their manager out.
“Umpire ejected Craig Counsell on his birthday for arguing a balk call,” Jomboy Media wrote on X.
The Cubs were trailing 3-4 in the bottom of the fifth inning on Friday. Brock Rodden had already reached first base on an error, and Brendan Donovan was facing Boyd.
After the batter bunted the first pitch foul, the Cubs starter decided to pull out his special card. Instead of throwing his next pitch to Donovan, he went straight to first base. While Rodden was safe, the crowd at T-Mobile Park booed loudly, and the umpire called a balk.
Boyd had an awkward, ‘this-ain’t-happening’ smile.
He stepped up to the umpire for an explanation while his manager was having none of it, and within seconds, Miller tossed Counsell. The skipper then moved toward the ump at T-Mobile Park, but the decision stood.
“And Brennan Miller says, ‘Happy birthday. You’re out of here,’” one of the commentators joked, per the Jomboy Media clip.
That gift was the fifth this season, tying his most. He was ejected five times in 2021 and 2018 while managing the Milwaukee Brewers.
According to MLB Official Rule 6.02(a)(3):
“If there is a runner, or runners, it is a balk when the pitcher, while touching their plate, fails to step directly toward a base before throwing to that base.”
The central argument in this case was that when Boyd attempted the pickoff, he didn’t place his foot directly toward first base. As a penalty, Rodden was awarded second base. But that was hardly the end.
Although Donovan grounded out on the next pitch, Randy Arozarena recorded an RBI single, driving Rodden home.
The Cubs fell behind 5-3, although they did spark a comeback.
Ian Happ homered in the eighth, while Alex Bregman hit a 405-foot homer in the ninth. The latter tied the game and forced the Seattle Mariners into extra innings.
But Chicago couldn’t capitalize, and an RBI single from Leo Rivas helped Arozarena reach home and secure a 6-5 win for the Mariners in the 10th.
“It’s not a balk. He hasn’t been called for a balk in seven years,” Counsell said postgame.
“It’s a situation where the umpire got fooled and made up a call, because he got fooled. It’s not a balk. Flat out. No other umpire is calling that a balk.”
Reportedly, Matthew Boyd has played in over 200 career games utilizing his deceptive pickoff move. And no one has ruled them a balk.
He uses this distinct quick-step/pickoff motion to prevent runners from stealing the bases, leading the majors in 2025 with 11 pickoffs. The last time someone reached that number was in 2012 by Clayton Kershaw. Here’s how it works:
Boyd lifts his leg and leans toward home plate exactly like his normal windup. He snaps a quick, fastball-like throw over to first base at the very last second. Hitters and baserunners struggle to tell the difference between him throwing home or throwing to first.
That’s it. That’s the trick.
In 2025, after the Cubs’ win against the Pittsburgh Pirates in a June game, Boyd acknowledged the impact of such a pitch.
“If I didn’t pick anybody else off the rest of the year, but it kept them a step closer to the base, and they didn’t steal a base, it’d be a win,” Boyd said. “And that’s kind of the point of it, right? It’s not the move in and of itself.”
In that particular game, Boyd could retire 14 hitters in a row.
Even this season, he has already used four of them among his 16 starts, just two short of the lead.
The last time Boyd was called out for a balk was in 2024 when he was with the Cleveland Guardians. But the decision on Friday night did take a toll on Boyd’s performance.
He allowed four earned runs in the sixth inning. His ERA reached 6.12 with that for the last 4 starts against the Mariners. Boyd admitted that it was “unfortunate” for the team, while his manager said they had “opportunities to win the game.”
He even expressed his disappointment on the Boyd call, noting the effort he had put into the moves.
The pickoffs by Matthew Boyd have contributed to six more outs throughout the season. Even though it doesn’t look gigantic, little numbers can make it big. Stating the obvious!
But things didn’t go their way this time.
Still, the way Craig Counsell tried to defend his pitcher says a lot about his confidence in Boyd’s pickoff attempts.
Matthew Boyd’s pickoff record makes the call more surprising
Boyd has had 16 starts this season. While his 4.15 ERA isn’t the most impressive one in MLB, he has 4 successful pickoffs so far. What’s more impressive is that he had a record 11 pickoffs in 2025.
That’s what makes Counsell’s argument compelling.
He mentioned how nobody had called a balk on Boyd for years, and the instance on Friday shouldn’t have been called either.
“It’s the same move I’ve done. It’s the first time that move’s been called a balk since 2019, when [former umpire] Joe West called it from third base,” Boyd reflected after the loss.
“Any run can make a difference in a game that’s a tie game, right? Obviously, I would’ve loved to be better.”
Meanwhile, Craig Counsell suffered his first ejection since June 23.
It marked his 39th ejection in his managerial career.
The Cubs suffered another loss against Seattle on Saturday, and this was their third defeat in a row. They are currently second in the NL West with a 74-56 record. Yet, Chicago is one of the biggest contenders in the National League with 4.0 games ahead in the Wild Card chase.
The Chicago Cubs and their manager would likely take it as just another setback and move forward with a bigger goal in mind as their road trip continues to Arizona after wrapping up in Seattle.