Welcome back to the Cubs Beat newsletter. Jordan Bastian has covered baseball for MLB.com since 2005, including the Cubs since the 2019 season.

CHICAGO -- Each fall, Cubs Charities has volunteers loading up vehicles near Wrigley Field to distribute Thanksgiving meals around Chicago. The event had a group of unexpected guests chipping in this year.

With the MLB Mascot Conference also happening in the city on Thursday, the Cubs had Fredbird, Mr. Met, Orbit and Wally the Green Monster working alongside Clark the Cub to load boxes into cars. It was an unusual, but entertaining sight for the team’s annual Thanksgiving initiative.

“Everybody showed up -- it was amazing,” said Jennifer Dedes-Nowak, assistant director of Cubs Charities. “It was so fun and it just brought a whole energy to the event and helped bring attention to what we were doing, which is to make sure people are provided with a Thanksgiving meal across Chicago and that they feel cared for and supported.

“We’ve been hosting this event for many years, but that really elevated it this year.”

Cubs Charities partnered with National Runaway Safeline -- which provides assistance to runaway, homeless and at-risk youth -- to pack 450-plus meals from Smoke Daddy BBQ in Wrigleyville for delivery to more than 20 shelters around the city. Besides the Cubs’ associates and MLB’s mascots, pitcher Brandon Hughes was also on hand to help out.

This holiday season, Cubs Charities also has a few drives happening:

Tuesday, Nov. 21 
Wintrust Community Tree Lighting  

4-9 p.m. CT

Attendees are encouraged to bring new hats, gloves and scarves and new or gently used coats (all sizes) for Cradles to Crayons. The Cradles to Crayons Cruiser will be parked on the south end of Gallagher Way beginning at 4 p.m., serving as a drop-off location for the winter weather gear.   

Nov. 27-Dec. 15 
Food drive for Nourishing HOPE Chicago  

Bins will be located in the Cubs Store in Gallagher Way outside Wrigley Field and in the Cubs’ offices lobby.

Dedes-Nowak noted that Cubs Charities associates are on target for more than 750 hours of volunteer service this year, including a slew of programs around the holidays.

They will be helping with food distribution at Pan de Vida in Little Village and teaming with Nourishing HOPE for food packing. They will be baking items at Misericordia’s Hearts and Flour Bakery, and continuing a partnership with Blessings in a Backpack and the Pedersen-McCormick Boys & Girls Club to deliver food for youth in need.

Dedes-Nowak added that this has been a year filled with volunteer work by a growing list of Cubs players.

Kyle Hendricks helped out once again with the Cubs Scholars program. Ian Happ donated more than 300 pairs of batting gloves to kids involved in the Cubs’ Jr. All-Stars. Patrick Wisdom pitched in at a local school as part of the All-Star grant initiative. Julian Merryweather and Michael Rucker spent time at a wheelchair baseball event connected with the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab. Hayden Wesneski spoke to a group from the CASE (Careers As Sports Executives) program.

With a group of players spending part of their offseason in Chicago, Dedes-Nowak was hopeful even more would help out with ongoing programs in the months leading up to Spring Training.

“It’s been really exciting,” Dedes-Nowak said. “With our team this past season, everyone was willing to step up to the plate, asking how they could get involved. We had a lot of engagement this year and we’re really excited for the future of incorporating our players into our work.”

MLB.com caught up with Gomes earlier this week. Here are three highlights from that conversation on the hiring of Craig Counsell, the impact David Ross had on the catcher, and expectations for 2024.

MLB.com: How did your initial conversation with Counsell go after he was hired?

Gomes: “He's very to the point, very honest. And that's all you can ask from a manager. But it was just mainly kind of what you’d expect an introductory conversation to be. You know me -- I can be very honest. And that's kind of how I was with him. I was like, ‘Man, we are in shock right now. It's still kind of crazy to think about it. But at the same time, we did not like playing the Brewers, because of the way you guys played. You guys had a phenomenal way of attacking the game.’ And for me, it starts with guys at the top. And I'm excited to put on the uniform and get to play for him.”

MLB.com: What did you learn from your two years playing under Ross?

Gomes: “One of the biggest things for me, I was really wanting to learn what it was that made him so respectable in the league. I enjoyed it [when Ross was a catcher], because every time I came up to the plate, it was like the guy was your friend, even though he's trying to strike you out. So, I was kind of learning how he communicated with guys and how passionate he is, man. I feel like that was one of the things that we saw -- or at least I got to see -- was how passionate he is with the game. Very thoughtful. And I got to learn a little bit of how he interpreted things, how to run a team, and our bullpen, how to navigate that kind of stuff. It's a tough deal, man. And getting to talk to him, he was very open and willing to take feedback, which is something that at times can be very hard to do. And I learned a lot from that.”

MLB.com: After bringing Counsell in, what are your expectations for the rest of the offseason and next season?

Gomes: “Getting the biggest manager, or however you want to put it, it shows that the front office is gonna get behind us and do everything they can with the resources and everything to help us win. But at the same time, I feel like that was the culture that we were trying to create [last season] in the clubhouse from the beginning of spring and into the season. It's the winning culture that can last and keep going not for a year or two, but for years. And I feel like that's the trajectory we're going.”

The Brewers played 138 games against the Cubs with Counsell at the helm in his eight full seasons (2016-23) in Milwaukee. Can you guess how many games he won against his new team?

A. 60
B. 66
C. 72
D. 81

C. 72

During Counsell’s eight full seasons managing the Brewers, the Cubs had a 66-72 record (regular season) against their rivals to the north. That included a 36-35 record against Counsell at Wrigley Field and a 30-37 ledger in Milwaukee. 

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