When the Brewers visit Wrigley Field on Friday for their first meeting with the Cubs this season, the focus will be on the managers: Pat Murphy of Milwaukee and his one-time protégé, Craig Counsell of Chicago.
It won't be the first time they have squared off as managers, but it will be the first time they have met since Counsell left the Brewers for the Cubs during the offseason for a record five-year, $40 million contract and Murphy, his bench coach, was promoted as his replacement.
Now, the two longtime friends are opponents -- not just for one game, not just for a series but for a whole season, leading teams that don't like each other in mutual quests for the same thing: the National League Central crown.