Article: Crew Throwback: Rob Deer

[reillymcshane]

On Easter Sunday, April 19, 1987, the Brewers were riding a season-opening 11-game win streak. The day was hot - 80 degrees - and County Stadium was packed. But the Brewers fell behind the Rangers and entered the 9th trailing 4-1. Glenn Braggs walked, and Greg Brock followed with a single. With one out, slugging outfielder Rob Deer stepped up to the plate.

Deer was a 3TO player before it was cool to be 3TO (meaning three true outcomes - a walk, a strikeout, or a home run). What followed next was the biggest hit of Deer's career - a towering blast to left into the wind. County stadium went wild. Dale Sveum followed with a home run of his own, and the Brewers had one of their wildest victories in franchise history. And Rob Deer became a legend as the home run was featured on the Sports Illustrated cover.

Rob Deer was born in 1960 in Orange, California. He was a big, powerful young man and was selected out of high school in the fourth round by the Detroit Tigers in the 1978 draft.

Deer's calling card then - and throughout his career - was his prodigious right-handed power. He hit more than 30 home runs three times in the minors. However, while Deer took his share of walks, he had a big hole in his bat. He struck out at an alarming rate (especially for the 1980s, when striking out 180+ times in a season was frowned upon).

Deer moved up the minor league ranks despite the strikeouts and low batting averages, reaching the majors in 1984. He spent all of the next season with San Francisco but struggled in a part-time role (.185 BA, 71K in 162 ABs). This would lead to the Giants shipping Deer to the Brewers for minor leaguers Dean Freeland and Eric Pilkington in the offseason. 

Deer was installed in right field, which he manned for the next five years. Despite low batting averages and huge strikeout rates, he quickly became a fan favorite as Milwaukee fans embraced the big outfielder due to his massive power. 

In those five years with Milwaukee, Deer slugged 137 homers while striking out 823 times. The strikeouts and low average (.229) would hamper Deer's effectiveness. The big issue was Deer's struggles against right-handers. If you dig into the numbers; he had a .922 OPS vs. lefties but a .701 vs. righties for his career. Modern teams would probably be more accepting of Deer's strengths and limit his exposure to right-handers.

After 1990, Deer departed via free agency and took his 3TO act to Detroit for a few more years. Other than a 25-game stint in San Diego in 1996, Deer spent the last few years of his career in the minors and in Japan. He retired after the 1996 season.

For his career, Deer led the majors in strikeouts five times. He held the American League single-season record for strikeouts before Jack Cust 'beat' him in 2008. And for a long time, he held the dubious honor of having the lowest official batting average while still qualifying for the batting title when he hit .179 in 1991 for Detroit. Chris Davis of Baltimore hit .168 in 2018.

Home runs and strikeouts defined Rob Deer as a player. You never knew what would happen when Deer stepped up to the plate - which brought electricity to the stadium with each at-bat. Milwaukee fans will never forget the towering blast he launched out of County Stadium or the 1987 Easter Sunday game.

After retiring, Deer toyed with racing but stayed in baseball as a hitting coach with the Padres and Cubs. He mainly works as a private instructor and runs baseball camps for kids. 

Deer struggled with alcohol and pain killer addiction (the latter due to various back surgeries), but he has put those demons in the review mirror.

A fan favorite and icon of the latter 80s Brewers, Rob Deer was added to the Milwaukee Brewers Wall of Honor in 2014.

Please share your memories of Brewer Rob Deer.

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[DuWayne Steurer]

Like Gorman Thomas before him, Rob Deer was my favorite Brewer during his tenure.  His dingers were never wall scrapers.  He hit some monster, monster shots deep into the County Stadium bleachers.  

[DuWayne Steurer]

Like Gorman Thomas before him, Rob Deer was my favorite Brewer during his tenure.  His dingers were never wall scrapers.  He hit some monster, monster shots deep into the County Stadium bleachers.  

[CheeseheadInQC]

I listened to a few games in 1986, but that 1987 season was what made me a baseball fanatic as a youngster and Deer was my favorite player. I can still remember having the life-sized milk poster of him. My dad talked my grandma into letting us bring the TV into the dining room so that’s where we were when he hit that home run.

[CheeseheadInQC]

I listened to a few games in 1986, but that 1987 season was what made me a baseball fanatic as a youngster and Deer was my favorite player. I can still remember having the life-sized milk poster of him. My dad talked my grandma into letting us bring the TV into the dining room so that’s where we were when he hit that home run.

[Joseph Zarr]

 

1 hour ago, CheeseheadInQC said:

I listened to a few games in 1986, but that 1987 season was what made me a baseball fanatic as a youngster and Deer was my favorite player. I can still remember having the life-sized milk poster of him. My dad talked my grandma into letting us bring the TV into the dining room so that’s where we were when he hit that home run.

That season definitely further entrenched me in the Brewer dugout of fandom. I have extremely fond memories listening to radio calls of Deer monster shots while heading to my grandma's house in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin during that season. Ahhhhh, nothing like baseball nostalgia on an Easter Sunday morning.

[Joseph Zarr]

 

1 hour ago, CheeseheadInQC said:

I listened to a few games in 1986, but that 1987 season was what made me a baseball fanatic as a youngster and Deer was my favorite player. I can still remember having the life-sized milk poster of him. My dad talked my grandma into letting us bring the TV into the dining room so that’s where we were when he hit that home run.

That season definitely further entrenched me in the Brewer dugout of fandom. I have extremely fond memories listening to radio calls of Deer monster shots while heading to my grandma's house in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin during that season. Ahhhhh, nothing like baseball nostalgia on an Easter Sunday morning.

[ClosetBrewerFan]

Excellent writeup and always a great memory of mine.  Maybe my favorite just because of how unexpected it was.  Family was all gathered around the radio.  When Deer hit that HR, we were screaming all through Gantner's walk and most of Sveum's AB until we eventually realized that Sveum hit the game winning HR.  Here is a video link:

 

[ClosetBrewerFan]

Excellent writeup and always a great memory of mine.  Maybe my favorite just because of how unexpected it was.  Family was all gathered around the radio.  When Deer hit that HR, we were screaming all through Gantner's walk and most of Sveum's AB until we eventually realized that Sveum hit the game winning HR.  Here is a video link: