Your Best Encounter with a Brewer?

[Warning Track Power]

I was watching the Selig staue presentation on MLB Network yesterday and I had to explain to my girlfriend who some of the players were. We got to Robin Yount's speech and she quickly noted that I had his player number t-shirt which then brought me to explaining to her who he is. Well, I then had to get into my favorite all-time encounter with a Brewer and couldn't be happier it was with Robin Yount.

I was about 8 (circa 1990) and I was in Chandler at the Brewers spring training. We had just seen a game and I was waiting to get autographs from all the players leaving the stadium. Robin was obviously being swarmed by everyone but he was signing from behind a chain-link fence so as to not get mobbed. The crowd was dying down and I was about to get my shot at an autograph. When it was my turn, Robin reached into his bag and grabbed a batting glove and stuck it through the chain-link to give to me. I couldn't believe my luck. I was about to get Robin Yount's batting glove. As I was about to close my hands around it, a woman grabbed the batting glove out of my hands and started to run away with it. Robin yelled "HEY!!! Come back here! I was giving the glove to the kid"...She sheepishly came back, gave the glove to Robin who then gave me the glove and said "here you go bud." Best Brewer memory.

Even though most of us can't love the guy more, seeing him on stage brought back the memory and I thought I'd share.

[Cracked Bat Collector]

Wow that is awesome! I have game used stuff but nothing can top a Yount batting glove haha you're lucky. Do you have it displayed at all at your house?

[Paul77]

I've been lucky enough to have a couple of encounters with players, but only one that I will share today.

 

A few weeks back, I shared a couch with Jim Gantner and watched part of the Brewer game as Gorman Thomas stood behind us saying some of the worst possible things about the various women that appeared on TV. He then told a story about Jerry Augustine that can not be repeated on this board, before falling asleep on the couch next to me.

 

I snapped a picture of Gantner sleeping (not as creepy as it sounds) only to have him wake up and call me a "donkey" and tell me that he wasn't sleeping, he was only resting his eyes.

[JimH5]

My very first "encounter" wasn't really an encounter at all. . .

 

1971: My mom is pregnant with my youngest sister. I'm 8, about to turn 9. My mom is at the gynecologist, and also pregnant at the time is Marty Pattin's wife. The ladies in the doctor's office are all excited about a Brewer in their midst. Pattin signs a deckle edge Brewer postcard to me and it is my first sports autograph.

 

A few years later, maybe 1977 or so, my neighborhood friends and I are playing in the yard. It's the all-star break, and they get word that Robin Yount is playing golf at Brookfield Hills Golf Course. Our neighborhood included Post Road, which runs parallel to the 7th hole. Yount and his group (including another player, I'm thinking Darold Knowles of the A's?) approach the green, when 4 or 5 of us come scampering out of the woods, running up to the green to get autographs. Yount couldn't be nicer, we got autographs from his group, though there was one guy who claimed not to be a player, and likely wasn't, so we didn't get his autograph.

 

Then a few years ago at a signing in New Jersey, none other than Gary Sheffield was the absolute nicest guy in the room. He signed long after his time was over, and he was also one of the most affordable sigs. There were probably 15 guys signing that day, and Sheffield was terrific, posing for pictures, telling stories, talking with kids. . .I was dumbfounded, as that is so contrary to the image that many of us have.

[dlk9s]

Way back when (don't remember the year exactly, but I know Greg Vaughn was the Brewers' hot minor leaguer), I went to the Brewers bowling event at Red Carpet Lanes. We were at Paul Molitor's lane, as was pretty much everyone else. My brother, two friends, and I got as close as we could, but there were a couple security guards blocking people off from him. When security wasn't looking, Paul turned to one of my friends and said, "Quick!" and took my friend's Paul Molitor rookie card, signed it, and stealthily gave it back. I wasn't the one who got the contact with Paul, but it was still awesome.

 

I went to tons of baseball card shows as a kid, so I met lots of Brewers, but Larry Hisle was always the coolest. He would talk to everybody, which also made the line take forever. Pete Vuckovich was also great. Met him at a Dannon yogurt bar promo, along with Mickey Mantle (yup), Mike Hegan, and someone else (Ken Sanders, maybe?). Obviously, since Mantle was there, the crowd was insane, but all the players took time to talk a little with me. When we got to Pete, my mom told him I was a pitcher - I was probably around 12 at the time - and he got a big smile on his face, gave me a couple words of advice, put his arm around me, and squeezed really hard as my dad took a picture. It was just really cool.

 

I used to go to a private pitching instructor at Mike Hegan's Grand Slam USA, and once Jerry Augustine subbed in. That encounter was of course more of a "professional" situation, but he was really nice and a really good teacher.

 

My other top experiences were with Brewers who made appearances at places like Boston Store or a local bank, when barely any fans showed up. My parents, brother, and I, would talk to them for like 15-20 minutes. I remember Bill Schroeder and Bill Wegman fell into this category.

[TooLiveBrew]

I went to grade school for a while with Vuke's son. The only thing I really remember is that he was a chaperone once on a field trip to the Milwaukee Public Museum, and at the time I was fascinated by his gator or snakeskin cowboy boots. I can't remember which skin it was (he told me when I asked), but I just thought it was pretty awesome.

[JimH5]

I forgot about my other fun encounter. . .

 

During my college years, and briefly afterward, (1982-1987) I was working as a DJ at the nightclub inside the Marriott (now Sheraton) hotel on Moorland Road.

 

Cecil Cooper came in occasionally, and a few times, he entered the DJ booth while I was working. The music was loud, so we did little other than exchange pleasantries, but it was fun to know that he liked what he was hearing.

[rudimen19]

Not quite an encounter but...when I was about 7 or 8 I decided to write letters to Robin Yount and Bud Selig. It must have been around 1990, because it was right after Robin almost left and whispers of a new stadium first started gaining momentum. I can't remember much of what I wrote, but those two events were the basis for the letters. I do remember my dad having me add a sentence to the Selig letter about some history that our families share (apparently my grandfather was friends with his father). My intent was just to tell these guys, my heroes, how much I appreciated them and the Brewers, and I wasn't really expecting a response but both men responded. Yount sent me a collection of souvenirs, which being a baseball-obsessed kid I thought was pretty cool. Selig wrote me a letter. He responded to an 8-year-old. He addressed my questions and thanked me for the support. He even confirmed the family history. I didn't quite get it at the time, but looking back it seems like a pretty admirable, if not remarkable, thing to do.

[jerichoholicninja]

I got to hold Don Money's coffee while he signed an autograph for me and Mike DeJean called me buddy once.

[colbyjack]

Very cool experiences. I've heard from a couple of co-workers that the Brewers were out and about yesterday due to the Selig statue.

In 2007 my wife, oldest son (who was 1 years old at the time) and myself took a road trip to Nashville to check out Ryan Braun with the Sounds and David Price of Vanderbilt. At the Sounds game we went down by the field where the players were stretching. Braun was evidently cocky, through the process, and upon watching him warm up I thought there was no chance we could get him to take a picture with our son. As he walked back toward the dugout, both my wife and I yelled out, "Ryan," he looked at us, recognized that we were wearing Brewers gear, and came over, seemingly dropping his cockiness while putting a big smile on his face. My wife asked him if we could take a picture of him with our son, fully expecting him to just be a backdrop to the photo as my wife had our son in her arms. Ryan said something to the effect of "sure," held out his hands, to which my wife dumbfoundly handed our son to Braun, leading to this...

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y155/colbyjack/braunhenry-web.jpg

I know I've shared this before, and I've had some pretty cool baseball experiences in my life, but this by far stands above and beyond any other. As he walked away I said something of the effect, "See you in Milwaukee," to which he flashed a confident smile. A month later Braun was called up.

[bucks2281]

I stayed at the same Boston hotel as the Brewers in 2008. I met Ed Sedar, Bill Schroeder, Ryan Braun and Tony Gwynn Jr. at the hotel bar after the Friday night game was PPD -- TGJ even bought a round of drinks for a group of traveling Brewers fans. I chatted with Corey Hart in the Dunkin Donuts Line the next morning.

 

I met Ben Sheets at the Brookfield Square Boston Store many years ago -- he seems like an awesome guy.

[TooLiveBrew]

As he walked away I said something of the effect, "See you in Milwaukee," to which he flashed a confident smile. A month later Braun was called up.

 

Awesome story, Patrick! That's pretty phenomenal. The deranged part of my brain told me Braun kept your son as a human sacrifice.

[homer]

I met Tom Trebelhorn once. Really nice guy....shorter than I was even when I was in 8th grade.

[TooLiveBrew]

I once saw Tom Trebelhorn sitting in my allergist's waiting room while I was waiting there, too. Even though my dad encouraged me to go talk to him, I was too much of a wuss to do so (I was like 9 or 10, and totally intimidated).

[kramnoj]

Not a player, but I used to work for Gateway Computers at the store that was in Brookfield, and sold a computer to Dean Taylor when he was GM of the Brewers. Unfortunately, I had only recently moved to Wisconsin and so I didn't know who he was until I was entering his credit application (90 days same as cash, not that he couldn't have put it on a credit card) and he wrote that his employer was the Brewers and I asked him what he did for them.

 

He was a nice guy, very analytical, asked good questions. It was funny because while I was talking to him, he had a pager that kept going off and he was checking it. I'm pretty sure it was a Saturday afternoon, but he was still a busy guy.

 

I also once almost ran into Selig in his black Lexus as he was coming out of Gilles and he didn't look to his left for traffic on Bluemound. I didn't have to slam on the brakes, but I did have to slow down.

[Warning Track Power]

In 2007 my wife, oldest son (who was 1 years old at the time) and myself took a road trip to Nashville to check out Ryan Braun with the Sounds and David Price of Vanderbilt. At the Sounds game we went down by the field where the players were stretching. Braun was evidently cocky, through the process, and upon watching him warm up I thought there was no chance we could get him to take a picture with our son. As he walked back toward the dugout, both my wife and I yelled out, "Ryan," he looked at us, recognized that we were wearing Brewers gear, and came over, seemingly dropping his cockiness while putting a big smile on his face. My wife asked him if we could take a picture of him with our son, fully expecting him to just be a backdrop to the photo as my wife had our son in her arms. Ryan said something to the effect of "sure," held out his hands, to which my wife dumbfoundly handed our son to Braun, leading to this...

 

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y155/colbyjack/braunhenry-web.jpg

 

Just curious...Why was Braunie wearing a Brewers jersey at a Sounds game?

 

 

[topper09er]

I have so many stories from hanging around outside of County Stadium with my brother before games trying to get autogrpahs. It was usually just me and one of my friends, both around 12, my little brother and about 5-6 adults trying to get autogrpahs. I lived close enough to walk to County so we would hang around from 3-4 hours before the game until BP started almost every day in the summer. The brewers parked in their parking lot near RF and the other teams players were dropped by cabs near home plate.

 

A few of many Brewer highlights: Whenever a brewer would park we would go near their lot for autographs but always kept an eye on the cab area because we could get a brewer autograph anytime but we only had one shot with the other team, so whenever a cab came we would leave the Brewer area and go over there. Jeff Cirillo realized this and I guess it bothered him so sometimes when he was coming over to sign he would yell something like "look, theres a cab" (which was a lie) and then he wouldnt sign for anyone who ran. Bud Selig once came and I talked to him about interleague play and how it would work for possibly 10 minutes even though I was only a kid and we actually had a real discussion, I thought that was pretty cool. Pretty much all the Brewers would sign anything we wanted and no one really stuck out as a real jerk.

 

Some other random players: Gary Sheffield was also very nice and signed everything anyone wanted, when he was done he even asked everyone if they had anything else they wanted signed, which was pretty rare. Maybe he felt guilty about what he did to leave Milwaukee? Tony Gwynn was really nice, he got out of his cab and everyone went by him and he said "so do you guys want my autograph," and then laughed and signed everything. Brett Mayne was signing and he asked me to hold his coffee cup, then since I didnt have anything for him to sign I had him sign the cup which I still have. Jason Kendall, who at the time was considered a good player, got out of his cab and starting running past everyone towards the door, then he stopped and said just kidding and signed everything. Rickey Henderson once got out of his cab, wearing a total pimp suit including a hat with a feather in it, and just said sorry kids Rickey dont sign. A few other stars that were really nice and just signed everything for everyone were Randy Johnson, Frank Thomas, Mark McGwire and Chipper Jones. A few guys who were total jerks and just walked past 3 kids and refused to take 1 minute to sign an autograph (among many) were Will Clark, JT Snow, Kerry Wood, and the king of them all Barry Bonds.

[cbustim]

I got into a shoving match with Gantner playing pick up hoops at WCTC after he called me a punk and shoved me from behind. I believe it was John Anderson that pulled us apart. This had to be about 12 years ago.

[colbyjack]

Just curious...Why was Braunie wearing a Brewers jersey at a Sounds game?

 

That day the Sounds were wearing Brewers jerseys, with a Nashville patch on the left sleeve:

 

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y155/colbyjack/ryanbraun1-web.jpg

[Funketown]

I met Jeremy Jeffress outside a game in 2005? It was the year he was drafted. He signed my hat. He was friendly, seemed like a normal 18 year old kid who was a bit shy, if anything.

 

That's all I've got.

[Hammer]

I met Willie Randolph during his 1 year stint with the brewers (1991). I was a 16 y/o high school kid that was still holding the dream of playing pro ball. I wasn't looking for autographs...just hanging out around the rail before the game. He was signing a different person's stuff and asked if I wanted an auto. I politely said "no" but would take any advice that he had for a HS baseball player. He asked if I was a pitcher or hoped to be a position player. I said "both" and he left for the dugout. He emerged with a big smile as well as with Duffy Dyer and Larry Haney. We chatted for about 10 minutes on what the biggest attributes HS players seemed to be missing and they both wished me "good luck" and went back to their duties. Although I never made it as a player (maybe could have been a DH http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif ) their words really helped me understand my shortcomings in baseball and how to improve upon them. I also became a mega-fan of Willie Randolph.

[Marc Newfield of Dreams]

The one encounter with a Brewer that stands out was in Philly, in 2002 I think. I was still in HS. Was vacationing out there with my family, and we planned it while the Brewers were out there. So one of the days we went to the Dave and Buster's out there to help kill some time. I had my Brewers cap on, as did my brother. A guy comes up and asks, "Hey, are you all from Milwaukee?" It was Ray King. My brother, dad, and I recognized him right away, but my mom had no idea. He introduced himself, chatted with us a bit, and asked if we were going to the game that night. We mentioned that we were planning on it, but hadn't bought tickets yet. He said, "Don't worry about it, I'll leave you guys 4 tickets at will call. Just mention my name." He took a picture with my brother and I and went on his way. Very nice guy.

 

So we get to Veterans Stadium to pick up the tickets, and they were behind home plate, like 15 rows up. Awesome seats. Have always rooted for Ray since.

[CheezWizHed]

My first Brewer game and I was 12 or so. I was by the fence near the Brewer dugout and Glenn Braggs was sitting down. I asked for an autograph. After going out and warming up, he came over. A rush of kids came shoving their way into line. Glenn reached over a dozen or so to grab my card and sign it.

 

To this day it is my only autographed BB card and on his rookie card too... Sad he didn't amount to much on the field.

[craigharmann]

I got Pat Listach's autograph during his rookie year, and it was the night after he hit his first ML homer in Boston. I said "Awesome homer Mr. Listach" and he flashed this big smile and said thanks. That's about all I got.

[JumpinMacFlash]

It was Ray King...Very nice guy.

 

I'll second this. In 2000, my dad, my brother, and I went to a game (I think against the Reds) and it was Jewel Osco Camera night (or something like that) where pre-game people got to go on the filed and get photos taken with some of the players. I completely avoided longer lines and was walking around trying to find some players to get a photo with. Poor Ray King had no one in his line. He was right next to the Racing Sausages and they had a much bigger turnout. I came up to get my photo with him, and he was completely blown away and excited that someone finally came over. No one else was lined up, so instead of going to any other lines we stayed and talked with Ray. He was an incredibly nice guy. When the Brewers traded for him in 2007, I knew he wasn't as good but I didn't care. I thought it was cool to have Ray back.