Baseball is America’s favorite pastime, and Wisconsin knows how to play it well. Today we will tell you more about baseball in the state by exploring the history and success of the MLB team Milwaukee Brewers.
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers is the sole Wisconsin baseball team in Major League Baseball (MLB). They are part of the National League (NL), competing in the Central Division. The Brewers first played in the American League (West, then East, then Central), but switched to the National League (Central) in 1997.
Brief Overview of the Milwaukee Brewers
The Brewers are a relatively young team, tracing their history to 1969 when they were founded as the Seattle Pilots in Seattle, WA. After only one year, the club filed for bankruptcy and it was acquired by Bud Selig (now serving as the Commissioner Emeritus of Baseball) who moved the team to his native Milwaukee and renamed it to the Milwaukee Brewers.
The Brewers were filling in the big gap left by the Milwaukee Braves who moved to Atlanta in 1966 and changed their name to the Atlanta Braves.
The team’s home stadium is the American Family Field which has seating capacity of 41,900 and the following dimensions: 342 feet (left field), 371 feet (left-center), 400 feet (center), 374 feet (right-center), 337 feet (right field) and 56 feet (backstop). The stadium features the only fan-shaped retractable roof in baseball which attracts attention but also problems (the roof has been repaired and replaced many times).
American Family Field opened doors in 2001, but it was then called Miller Park, honoring its business partner the Miller Brewing Company; in 2020, the partnership between the stadium and the brewing company ended, and American Family Insurance purchased the naming rights, hence the name change. Before the opening of the new ballpark, the Brewers played at the Milwaukee County Stadium which was previously home to the Milwaukee Braves.
Awards
The Milwaukee Brewers finished first in their former division, American League East, twice, in 1981 and 1982. Additionally, they managed to win the American League Championship Series in 1982 when they faced the California Angels. The Brewers have still not won another Championship Series, with theirs being the second-longest active championship drought in the MLB.
Since their move to National League Central, the Brewers scored four first places in their division (2011, 2018, 2021 and 2023). Consequently, they won the National League Division Series in 2011 and 2018.
Unfortunately, the Brewers have not yet won the World Series. They are one of five MLB teams to have never won the World Series; the Brewers is the oldest team (along with the San Diego Padres) to have never won the coveted trophy. The team came close to winning the World Series in 1982 after winning the Championship, but they lost 4-3 vs. the St. Louis Cardinals.
Notable Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers have had many impressive players over the years. Eight Brewers, who have either played on the team or managed it, have been inducted in the National Baseball Hall of Fame:
- Hank Aaron – Aaron played for the Brewers for only one season (1975-1976), his last one, but he previously played for the former Milwaukee team, the Braves. Aaron has many career highlights, including being an All-Star 25 times, winning the Gold Glove Award three times, and becoming a World Series Champion with the Braves in 1957.
- Rollie Fingers – Aptly named, Fingers served as a relief pitcher for the Brewers for two seasons (1981-1982, 1984-1985). He famously became the World Series champion three times in a row with the A’s (1972, 1973, and 1974).
- Trevor Hoffman – Hoffman is another impressive pitcher who despite playing for the Brewers for only one season (2009-2010) has a place on their Wall of Honor. Hoffman was an All-Star seven times and an NL saves leader twice.
- Paul Molitor – Molitor is an iconic Brewer, having played for the team between 1978 and 1992. He is known as a fast and accurate batter. Molitor boasts of 234 HR, 1307 RBI and 3319 hits.
- Bud Selig – Selig is the former owner of the Brewers, known as the man who brought professional baseball back to Wisconsin. For his impressive feat with the team, Selig was inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
- Ted Simmons – Simmons is a former catcher for the Brewers (1981-1985). He is known as one of the top hitting catchers in baseball with a batting average of 0.285. He has won the Silver Slugger Award (1980) for that reason.
- Don Sutton – Sutton was a pitcher who primarily played for the LA Dodgers but had three successful seasons with the Brewers (1982-1984). He is currently seventh on baseball’s all-time strikeout list, having recorded 3574 strikeouts in his career.
- Robin Yount – We saved the best for last or the most famous Brewer, Robin Yount. Yount spent his whole career playing for the Milwaukee team (1974-1993) as shortstop and center fielder. He contributed immensely to the Brewers’ only Championship win in 1982 for which he won the Gold Glove Award, the Silver Slugger Award and became the MVP of the American League. Yount is an example for all young Brewers but nobody can don his lucky No.19 shirt as the Brewers retired the number in his honor.
