Article: Spring Training Memories: Meeting Teddy Higuera

[Sean Franken]

Hello there. It’s been a while. I’m back with another trip back in time, so let’s hop into the DeLorean and go back to Spring Training circa 1989/1990, and one child’s encounter with Teddy Higuera.

Image courtesy of © Tom Lynn, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Technically, this story is not mine to tell, but I have been given permission by the person that lived it to share it. Parts of the story may or may not be embellished for dramatic effect. I’ll let you, the reader, be the judge.

It was a beautiful spring Arizona afternoon. The sun was shining. The snakes were hissing. Warmups were underway for a spring training game. The pop of a ball hitting a catcher’s mitt was in the air. You know the sound. You can hear it now. It’s making you smile.

A mother and father made the trek to Arizona from Wisconsin with their four daughters. They were there to catch a glimpse of their beloved Brew Crew. The father spied Teddy Higuera, the Brewers’ star pitcher. He nudged one of his daughters, who at the time was eight years old.

”Look, there’s Teddy Higuera," he sai,.

”Who?” his daughter asked, more interested in playing with her Teddy Ruxpin bear. 

”I wonder if he’d come over here?” asked Dad, to no response. “Teddy, Hey, Teddy!” he yelled.

”Dad! What are you doing?” the daughter shrieked.

The man had caught the attention of Higuera. He turned and started to walk toward the family. To his daughter, it may as well have been Godzilla stomping buildings and people on the streets of Tokyo. She wanted nothing to do with it.

”Dad, he heard you. He’s coming over here. Can we go? Can we just go back to the car? Please can we just go?”, she said, tears filling her eyes. 

Higuera greeted the family and couldn’t have been nicer. “Nice bear,” he said to the girl. Then: “Do you want a ball?”

Higuera proceeded to sign baseballs for the girl and her family. He then offered to have his picture taken with the kids. The girl was still distraught. Standing next to Higuera, she had that look most kids have when they get their picture taken with someone in a creepy Easter Bunny costume (which is pretty much every Easter Bunny costume). 

But this wasn’t the Easter Bunny. This was Teddy Freakin’ Higuera. He put his arm around the girl and a calm came over her. The frown on her face turned upside down. 

“Mr Higuera, my bear is named Teddy, too,” she said.

Higuera patted the child on the head and said, “I like that.”

The girl walked away with a baseball and a picture, but more importantly, she walked away with a smile and a memory that would last a lifetime. Fast forward to November 17, 2018. She once again had a smile and a memory that would last a lifetime, As a matter of fact, so did I. That’s the day we were married. 

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[Seth Stohs]

Oh, what a fun, cute story... and I did NOT see that ending coming!! 

Please thank your contact for letting you share the story.

As a kid from Minnesota that is old enough to remember the mid-to-late '80s, Teddy Higuera was so good. He seemed to always do well against the Twins, though I guess I could verify if that's true or not. 

I know in 1988, Twins soft-tossing LHP Allan Anderson won the AL ERA title over Higuera by percentage. In an interview a couple of years ago, I could tell that Tom Kelly was still irritated that Anderson didn't want to make his final start the year to win that. 

OK, I had to look. Higuera made 11 starts against the Twins and went 7-2 with a 2.99 ERA, 4 Complete Games and 1 shutout.