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Welcome to the Winklerverse. It is Wednesday, the 25th of March. It is a Wagner Wednesday. Andrew Wagner. Um AndrewWigner.com.
How did it Okay. I should probably do that. That's what everyone else does. Join my sub stack. Andrew Wagner.
Sub stack? I'm gonna get a I have a sub stack, I didn't put nothing on it yet, but I got an account. I think I do too. I don't think there's anything on it.
Well, when you go on Substack and if you follow somebody You get an email from them every day. I don't want that. I just want to follow up on these things. Yeah. And let's face it, no one wanted to hear what I had to say when I was writing for a living or on the radio for a living.
What the hell would the difference be now? I just spew all my nonsense on Twitter.
So both of us To elaborate for those that don't know. We're not Heavily available on Wednesdays at 11.30 a.m. Or albeit any time. Right now. Sirius XM needs to give us like an overnight show.
My favorite, aside from yours, of course, my favorite radio show of all time was Les Grobstein out of Chicago. like that, what was it, 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. Like And he would just get. All the degenerates call in the degenerate gamblers.
the druggies, the dads sitting up feeding their kid. Like, those are my people. The people that aren't sleeping, the people that are. going through the betting line, the horse racing forms. uh avoiding their bookies And it would be like Accommodation therapy session.
Alcoholics Anonymous Session, and then like sports history. Like, that was my favorite show. That, that, That or a celebrity pull my finger contest on ESP and the Oatsho, that's what my career trajectory is right now. Mine is, honey, can you get a raise at work so I don't have to go. Back to the Jungle.
So I'm making her work twice as hard. Also, is your hat the paper cup logo? It is. Thank you. That's pretty dope.
Thank you. Robert says, I just switched over from Iran coverage to this. Um just as compelling. Oh baby, we're gonna bomb all morning. Grant, I'd pay to your sub stack wags if it had Morgan Wallen reaction videos.
Well, at least on Substack, I can swear.
So, you know. That's you, Morgan Wallen. Yeah. So we talked yesterday. Um About the Brewers and his and stuff.
I had Grant and Paul on. And I was trying to figure out what is the top story right now with the Brewers. And I feel like it's the TV situation. Is that incorrect? I don't think you're incorrect at all.
I mean There's no There's no lineup drama. There's no roster drama. You know that they're not picked to win it. You know they're probably going to be in the mix. There are no real question marks with the team.
Everything is kind of off the field, and it's the whole. cable kerfuffle and Let me tell you. If people are surprised that the brewers haven't come out yet, and announced a cable channel, then You're dumber than the brewers because this is all by design. And anyone that thinks it's not is crazy. But is this the brewers' fault or is this baseball's fault?
I mean, it's both. Listen, the brewers have known what cable channel they're going to be on for God knows how long. I mean, That was things that they had set up. But let's see. What are you going to do?
Give people the answer to how to watch it on the platform they already have and are paying for? Or are you going to try and shake down your fan base for every $100 subscription you can possibly get? They're not going to announce it to the morning of opening day, and that writing was on the wall from day one. They got to make money. They're not getting.
even though they were getting opiance from FanDuel or Bally or whatever it was called. I mean, they're not getting that anymore. You know, the $20, $30 million a year.
So they gotta shake down for every hundred bucks they can get. I mean, that's that organization's MO, scrape every penny you can. out of every customer, every fan. Until their pockets are empty.
So, yeah, this isn't a shock at all. They're going to drag this thing out as long as they humanly can. just to get every last cent of subscription fees.
Well, I'll get back into that in a minute. I did go to the exhibition game. on Tuesday afternoon. And I'm glad I went and I had a good time. Saw Billy Schmidt there, and I took a great picture of him and his family when they got on the Jumbotron.
Yeah, were those his kids or were those just random people that he like sat down next to? Ah, it's his beautiful family. He's married with children. Yeah. My God, have I wasted my life away.
And and I said I was uh I saw actually my wife clocked him. She's like, is that the guy you used to work with? And like, I couldn't even see him. Like, how did you recognize? Billy, but she did.
And I went and talked to him for a bit. And then, as soon as I came back, they got on the Jumblotron and I. Snapped a picture real quick, and it's a beautiful picture. I think the brewers should use it in their marketing, quite frankly, not just because I took it. That's a testament to the Schmid company.
But It was a good time. There was like, there was, we bought six, we bought seats in the 18th row. I wanted to go because. It was after, it was at 4:10. I went to Gone.
I didn't go Monday. That was the night game. I didn't want to go to that. I wanted to go to the game at 4:10, mainly because I didn't want to bring my kid home and just stick him in front of the TV to watch fucking YouTube. until my wife got home so we went here wife came with And it was good.
It was a two-hour game. It was quick. Um The tickets were 25 bucks, which I don't have a problem with that. Is that were they normal prices or were they like special prices because it was an exhibition? Yeah, I think every ticket was 25 bucks.
And you got a seat, but it was really like. Sit where you want.
Okay. I would not have been shocked if they would have charged normal regular season prices and made everyone sit in their assigned seat, no matter how empty the stadium was. And it looked pretty empty. It was. Paid for parking.
And I thought we were going to have to pay the $42 for gold parking, and I was like, fucking Christ. But then it was $15.
So I don't know if you think that's too much or not, but I did pay fifteen dollars to park. That's the Brewers, man. I feel like that could have been a free parking day. Yeah, that absolutely could have been a free parking day, but. Listen, you gotta pay them big salaries.
They're shelling out somehow. Yeah, I do feel like that could have been a... Free parking, but um, but it wasn't. But we got in, you know, we bought a hot dog, bought some brats, bought the peanuts. Did all the concessions.
They did have a 50-50 going. Ooh, $28 in the pot. I think the jackpot was a 1500.
Well, that's not bad.
Well, you think your odds are pretty good. And then I did run into a guy who won it.
So that's it. It was after the. He won it after I'd met him. If you win that pot, do they give you the money there at the game?
Well, yeah, I never won. I play every time. I think they give you a, yeah, I think they give you a. Check.
Okay. But they have to, you pay your taxes on it too, right away. I think it's like winning at the casino. You can. Take it right away, or you can pay your taxes later.
Because, like, if you won, are you obligated then to buy beer for everyone in your section after that? Like, there seems to be. I wonder how that works. If I were to ever win, I would never say like, Holy shit, I won. Yeah, me neither.
I mean, I would buy a ticket all the time. Even though I was in the press box, because, well, I'm broke. That's why I'm in the press box. And one time I was one one number away. And I remember that because some woman cut in front of me in line out in the smoking area to get her ticket.
And then I ended up being one number away.
So I'm wondering if that woman. One my jackpot 'cause that would have fixed my truck. Corey says, sorry about that, Andrew. Corey says, speaking of the Brewers, the women Badgers broke the four-month-long L-flag curse. Ah, that's right.
The hockey tongue.
So I saw someone post about that after the Badgers lost. And I'm sorry, you cannot include the Badgers in the Elf Lake curse because the Badgers stink in March every year. Like that has nothing that is a pre-existing curse that has nothing to do with flying the l-flag That is everything to do with Greg Guard.
So You can't include that in the. Yeah, there isn't, first of all, there is no L-flag curse. They didn't do anything wrong. The Packers have a shitty coach. The Badgers always choke in March.
The Bucs are run by Jimmy Haslam. Where are the teams being cursed here? Because DePaul Sweat Marquette, who gives a flying fuck? about either program. When was the last time that DePaul's basketball team was even remotely relevant?
I don't know. I guess now because They b they they beat Marquette. Twice. And that Marquette can't really count either because Marquette's the University of Suburban Chicago.
So there are more Cubs fans on that Marquette campus than there are Brewers fans. And it's not funny because it's something that they are really latching onto in Chicago that's like. This is a real thing that's happening. We did this. They're trying to take credit for our already Or all yeah, the bullshit we already go through anyway.
And they, they, I can't, I can't spend any more time on this elf leg. It is so irrelevant. It means nothing. Personally, I thought it was dumb. But I get it.
Like You're going up against your arch rival. And your manager bailed on you to go to your R-Tribal. Like, I get that aspect. They put the L-flag up because the Cubs flew an L, not the Brewers. Yeah.
So Yeah.
Now, no one, and if and they oh, well, they got swept by the Dodgers. No fucking shit. The Dodgers kept their pitchers on the injured list all season and then trotted them back out there healthy in the playoffs. They should have said the ghost of Bob Euchre brought the L-flag out like that stupid letter they talked about. Yeah, what the fuck Jesus.
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If the rest of the organization was run as well as the baseball operations department, Like, if their communications department was run as well as the baseball ops, it'd be the best-run organization in all of baseball. What? They are their biggest enemies. Like they don't know how to communicate properly. They have no strategy half the time.
They do nothing. to like help the media. Like, I do not understand how some of the people in charge of that organization wipe their own ass or tie their own shoes. It boggles the mind.
Well, I'm not trying to lead you down any path, but say more. But look, I mean, the whole thing with the Euchar letter. I mean, that was just stupid. Um And then to play it off like it was, you know. K-Fob.
Uh That was dumb. The whole thing with the Live League game being all secretive, hush, hush about it. Like, you should have been. Promoting the hell out of that and not trying to bury the story and hide behind it. Just the thing with the cable channel, just.
Be proactive. Like work with your fans. Be out there, get ahead of things. You have Mark going out there. And listen, I give Mark credit because.
In gripe, I hear all the time, especially like out of Pittsburgh. Bob Nutting, I think it is, is the owner of Pittsburgh. And he's AWOL. And that organization is run. Bass Akwards more than anyone in baseball.
But he never speaks to the media. Mark, we would get a couple times a year, and I give him credit for that. But he's not good. when he's talking to the media. It's not intentional, it's just he's not polished, and he'll ramble, and he'll kind of tail off, and he'll say things that.
On the surface.
Sound god-awful. Like the whole thing last year with the is my job to win a World Series or is my job to find the summer of fun? That was taken. That was when that got printed by Nightingale, who again I respect. She took one fragment.
of a longer answer to a completely unrelated question and fit it into the story. Like Where Mark was going with that made sense. But he rambled and rambled and kind of veered off. I'm not saying this from a political standpoint. It's very Trump-like, where he'll make a statement, and then there's like five little trail-offs that just.
And then it goes off the rails. They do this stuff all the time. I don't get it. you can be that undisciplined. when it comes to getting your message out, especially in a market like Milwaukee.
Where it's small. And I'm not saying like we're not trying hard, but we're not out there like New York trying to get a gotcha moment every day. You're asking legitimate questions. I'm so thankful that I don't have to deal with that crap anymore. Like,.
It's going to be a summer of my summer of peace and relaxation and Less aneurysms. Your entertainment and passion summer. Yes. How long have you covered the team? I got my first credential in 98.
I was there every day from. Two thousand. Two? Yeah, second year in Miller Park.
So, if you're not going to cover the team every day now, do you care? Done. Are you going to follow them in case you cover them again or what? Uh probably not. I don't.
I don't have any interest in 2023. When I step back. Um I don't think I watched, listened to, definitely didn't attend. a single game until August of that year. Um Yeah.
Didn't miss it. Sheriff Sel didn't miss having to, you know, jump through hoops just to. Have the right to do the job every day.
So, no, I mean, I might. I still like baseball. Probably go up with some Timber Rattlers games and get ripped shit. Maybe go down to Beloit, get rip shit. Watch, I believe they call it as a fan.
But I Have every go check out some Doc Spiders games in Fondi. How are you doing with the loss of we didn't get to talk after that trade? How are you doing with the departure of Caleb Durbin? Because if memory serves, didn't you cross passing them once to the Doc Spider's hunt? Yeah, I did a Q ⁇ A with Caleb Durbin.
But they traded them. We had a nice time. You know, I've I've been in that locker room. And I could never connect with any fucking buddy.
Well But I also, you know, I don't I don't I don't It was weird. The only person I really ever connected with. It was Jeremy Jeffers because I gave him money. I gave him checks from the station. And he's like, oh, hey, man, just the guy I wanted to see.
Well, yeah, I got money for you. I love JJ, he was a good guy. But yeah, so Caleb Durbin, we have this hour-long talk. We talk a little before, after. He's great.
Then they fucking trade him. I think they trade him because. Because you talked to him. He talked to you. You're blacklisted like I am.
They talked about it. I was surprised they let me in the stadium yesterday. I thought my face surveillance was going to that's not operating for these first games.
Well, I got a funny hunch about that. There's another reason why I won't be following or attending games. The facial record. How bad is that technology there? Is it like a fucking casino?
Oh, you are being watched. every single they have cameras everywhere Like It is more than a casino. You are under surveillance from the second that you walk into. That facial recognition stuff. When they started implementing that in a couple of press boxes, my eyebrows raised pretty quickly.
I'm like, that's not cool. There's no need for that. Should I wear a mask when I go in? Oh, because that would be totally on brand for you. That was.
Do it. And the face shield, the plastic face shield. If anything, we should. Thanks. Don't give me talking mask.
I want to say this about Mark.
Okay. I And I'm pro I'm pro Mark. I'm pro Mark. I am two. To an extent.
Yeah, I think. I think he could do better not coming off so cheap. Yeah. But I do think that he cares about the viability and sustainability of the Milwaukee Brewers. I I agree there.
And he wants to win. I don't think he doesn't. Want to win. I think that one issue. That Has, I think the big issue surrounding Mark, and forgive me to those who've heard me say this before, I've talked about this, is.
He's really, for whatever reason. Right now, like our only taste of true ownership. Because the Packers are owned by people like me. Uh the books The books have owners. But we don't We don't make the same connection.
Even when Eden and Lazarie and Alex was trying to buy a Senate seat or whatever the fuck he was doing. What is he doing now? No one knows. Yeah. I don't know.
Is he on LinkedIn? Should I look? I'm still, I am shocked. Because everything that I heard. Before this whole Senate thing, when I was still living downtown.
was His goal was to run for mayor of Milwaukee. That was the plan. Run for mayor of Milwaukee. That was. Senate wasn't in the cards.
Like he was laying the groundwork. to run for mayor of Milwaukee. And like I've had people tell me. flat out like He had exploratories going on. He was.
Working with the movers and shakers, that was the job that he wanted to get. He wanted to run for mayor of a lot. And I want to know what happened where he. And the running for Sonic Gilliga's a h Turned out to be a blessing for all of us because we got rid of schmuck. I have the Alex.
You want to look at his LinkedIn page? Alex Lazarie LinkedIn. Yeah, so let's start in February 2021. Candidate for United States Senate.
Okay. Then he was a pork right there on the screen. This is fancy. Yeah, you like this? Then he was a board member at front desk.
What's that? CEO, FIFA World Cup Host Committee. Oh, for God's sake. Vox. Then he was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Travel and Tourism.
for the Department of Commerce.
Now since February last year, he's the CEO. of the FIFA World Cup, New York, New Jersey. House Committee. Perfect spot for him. Perfect spot for them.
Oh, I connected with him. Look at this. I'm a f I can he's okay. What always amazed me about him is he was like What was it? He was like the vice president of strategy or some crap.
And then he'd be sitting court side. tweeting about the poor officiating. And I'm like, how did the Bucks not get in trouble for this if a member of their ownership? If a member of their executive board. is tweeting shit about the officials.
Like, isn't that an NBA fine? Tipping off shams about Bogdanovich, or am I just assuming that? I don't think you're wrong at all. I don't think you're wrong at all. And then And then we get and then we didn't get them.
Yeah, that wasn't.
Sometimes people, you know why people like to reveal things? I don't know why. They just like to reveal things. Like, who why why would you tell anyone that? I will say this about the Bucks.
For all that, I have shit on the Bucs over the years. Let's face it, nobody has shit on them more than I. Dance Muterek. who is still the media i still believe is the media relations director Might be the best at his job in this city. Like, He has no business being in that job because he is too nice of a human being.
Like By far, the best of the NBA. He might be the, he's definitely the best in this market, and he might be one of the best in all sports. Dan, you're one of the good ones. Not as good as some in the Warriors organization, I would contend, but. Oh, that's right.
Yeah. He did do me a solid, so. And he is my favorite winkler. And then my parents as well, I think. But back to my point on Mark is So the Bucs ownership, and Herb Cole was kind of this guy forever.
I just don't think, like, the Bucks. Jimmy Haslam is an owner of the Bucks. And don't tell me. Bit Doctor, what a well-oiled machine Jimmy Haslam's other pro franchise is. Let me tell you, as a Bengals fan, I can only sit and laugh as I look north on I-70.
But Doc Rivers is such a Jimmy Haslam hire. Yeah. And the fact that he's still here. I mean they're losing by 40 points a fucking night. They don't care.
I don't know what's going on with this Giannis bullshit. He is hurt. Are they still playing are they still paying Bud? Or is that done now? I don't think they're paying Bud anymore.
They might still be paying Griffin. They're still paying Griffin, though. Mm-hmm. Maybe they just don't want to pay three coaches, but I don't know how Doc has not been fired and replaced with Darvin Hamp yet. Like that that's A flow.
Yeah, so you can do that one. But we don't we don't We don't go after Bucks' ownership. When we go after the Bucks, we're yelling at who, horse, doc? Yeah. Well we don't we don't go when it's the Brewers We never yell about We always, yeah, everything David Stearns does.
We blame Mark for, and now Arnold. And then everything that Jimmy Haslam does. We blame Horst. Who may not even be in this country anymore. We don't fucking know.
So I don't I don't I don't know why that exists, but I I think it's important to recognize it does. There is a I think because Mark is more out there and has been. In front of the camera, has spoken more, is more accessible, is more hands-on, or at least visibly more hands-on. uh than the Bucks owners who are kind of elusive. Like, when's the last time anyone heard from West Edens?
Never mind the Haslams. Like, we've seen them out and about, but, like, Wes Eden's always struck me as the reasonable one of that group from day one. We just did that interview with ESPN. Other than that. Is his kid still dating?
Aaron Rodgers, wasn't that a thing for a while? Do you hear that? Yeah. Oh, I'm getting a phone call. Uh oh.
It's coming in on my computer. Are we in trouble already? You gonna answer it or we're just gonna hand it off? Mark Larry. That's all you say, got Nazi or Tyler Martin.
All right. or somebody else in the organization. Mike had nausea. What the fuck? What did I say?
But so I just I think it's important to recognize that Mark is. I'm not saying Mark is perfect, and I don't think you are either. And listen, I take because when a fan base has a fan base. Like if you're a Philadelphia fan. There's owners.
Of all the teams. But Mark like takes it, he takes it all from us. Yeah. I I get I do think Mark owes it to the fans to spend more on the big league club. But at the same time, This is kind of the worst time for it.
Because we're Where this season was the spot to make the big upbreak. Because here's the thing when you have So much young talent under team control that's good talent. Who do you get rid of? For the veteran guy in the big contract. Who will Maybe put up better numbers, but let's face it.
They're probably going to be pretty similar. Like Where you gotta go on fragment? No. Like, where would they have made... the big splurge and then You've got.
pretty much at each of your next two levels. You've got actual dudes knocking on the door. like they're kind of stuck between a rock and a hard place because yeah Fans wanna spend, spend, go out and get this and get that, but What are you really gonna do? Last year, the big thing was go out and get Suarez.
Well, Would that really move the needle? Like I I I think Mark operates the the business. I don't want to say cheap because it looks that way, but he operates it like a business. You know, he operates within the income and the revenue that's generated by the business, which is how smart business people do it. You know, you're not.
There's this Common misconception that, like, Owners of pro sports franchises should have to dip into their own fortune or operate at a loss. Just to put a winner on the field. And I don't know why that is. Like, it's some big taboo that. You know, players should get every possible cent, no matter how ridiculous the number is, but.
An owner making even a penny in profit is some horrible thing. And I've never understood that. But yeah, I give Mark credit. to an extent Um, I do think that the fans have an argument. in that they don't spend, they don't do this, they don't do that.
But at the same time, You know, the big knock on Mark early on was that. Agents namely Boris, would bypass Doug Melvin. and go right to Mark, who would work out a deal. And that's how you get stuck with. you know, Supon, a move that I still defend.
Garza, Los, Wolf, those guys. You know, big money contracts for pitchers that are maybe good for a year, maybe two at most, and then. Shit the bad. Buckshot Bobby with five bucks to the show says, I love you, Bart, but I wouldn't pick up dog shit with that hat. What the fuck you mean?
Do I think Tom Izzo and Sean McVay have the same voice? Yes, yes. Tom Mizzo does? Yes. Is Sean McVay?
Yes. That is a good idea. I wonder if Buckshot Bobby must have seen that thing on Twitter too because I saw that during the tournament.
Someone put that out there. Maybe it was Buckshot Bobby. I don't know. But someone brought that up during the tournament. My Zim is falling out.
Yeah. There we go. Hold on. I'm going to listen to some Tom Izzo because then maybe. Zinn, are you on a three, a six?
Are you a nine guy? You're probably a nine guy. This is just a three. Hmm. Yeah.
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Yeah. Okay, we'll check into that. Also, Carl's place and Dan Shaney. Insurance. Here's Tom Izzo.
It's like real good. Just start. You don't play as good. You work your way back in. All right, so if Sean McVay is like this.
Then it's the American way. It's the American way. I don't know. I don't know if I can get it. This is so high tech.
I am like... But that is the American. I don't know I don't know that I can just go from McVeigh to Izzo. I think it's a different impression. If you work hard in life.
But my McVay's down here, I'm talking like I'm fucking Frank Caliendo. I do one goddamn impression. Jesus. All right, anyway. Um What do normal human beings do in the summertime when they're not wasting their life every night, weekend, and holiday.
in a major league press box. Like What do I do with myself this summer? You wanna take up golfing? Hell no. I'm out of ideas if you don't want to take up golfing.
Yeah. So I'm living out in um Fabulous lake country for a while. uh not by choice it was just uh Yeah. free place to live. Um And everyone out here golfs.
Everyone out here does like bougie bullshit. Uh but there's a lake out here. And I could like see myself just sitting on the end of the pier. with a cooler and a fishing rod with no hook. Just Because I don't eat fish.
Just sitting and drinking all summer. Like, I like the thought of that. Disgolfing or is that disgolfing? Would you do it? Would you go frolfing?
No, absolutely not. Absolutely. I think so. I've had people ask me if I wanted to go do that, and there's nothing about it. Like let's see.
Uh walk around for a couple hours chucking things. Like I can do that in my basement or my backyard. I just Yeah. Do you still want to make content? Uh I might uh With the whole The contracting and remodeling stuff is picking up, so I might start doing.
More content there because I enjoy doing that and I don't have to deal with media relations assholes to do it. I like that. Um Turn around. I don't know. It's gonna be I'm gonna spend a lot of time at concerts.
Probably smoking a lot of weed. That's definitely part of it. Yeah. It's gonna be weird. We should go kick it.
We should we should go Spider's game. I'll go to a Dax Fagers game. We'll get seasoned tickets for everybody here. Um, What about like What about where you Do your skilled and trained as a baseball writer. Yeah.
Could you be like for hire from Little leagues, and you write up a game summary, and then the parents can like. I don't know, buy it and then they can buy interviews. You do I don't fucking know. He can only require me to be around these. They know I'm going to spend the money on that.
Our little leagues, there's so much money in little league baseball. You have to be able to grease these parents out of it. Like, I'll write you an article. For 200 bucks, and it will help your kid get seen in seven years. Yeah, there you go.
Tap into that travel ball bullshit money. Yeah, I'm an idea. Is Rocco going to play that? Are you going to send him out? No, he's probably playing kicky ball, isn't he?
Uh, he plays some baseball, he does soccer, he does hoops. I mean, he was ecstatic to watch the game yesterday. It was a great time. Oh, and for those going to Miller Park, the Brewers did change their kids' zone up.
So that's a big move. Yeah, they change the kid zone. There's there's they move the running. And there's new games you can play. There's like rolling ball in a thing.
There's like a mini skee ball thing that. Is going to be full all. I mean, that's going to be the popular one. You roll a ball up into a hole, and then your sausage moves. It's a sausage race kind of game, but I'm not touching that one.
Okay. Yeah. You roll a ball into a hole and your sausage moves. Is that what I said? Yeah.
That is how the game works. You put a ball into a hole. And then your sausage moves accordingly. I'm not touching it. I have today's show is sponsored by Strawberry.me.
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Outside the outfield, which was like the most depressing place on earth. that just wide open expanse of concrete with like the damaged walk of fame. monuments they're finally going to put like a outdoor plaza courtyard out there and activate that space, which Only took them, what, 25 years to realize that this is dead space we could be using. Bravo. Yeah.
Could have been parking. They need to do something about the Walk of Fame, though. Number one, the people that are voting for it, and we've discussed it, the press box are jackasses. Like, it should not be harder to get on the Walk of Fame than it is to get in Cooperstown. But Then, what they do with the Walk of Fame, it's just like, and if you've been there, you know what I'm talking about.
It's just like plaques on the ground that no one notices, which is stupid. Like, why don't they do like they do at Maryvale where they have like... Standing like structure, sculpture, whatever you want to call it, they have like. the number and then a plaque with what the player did and who they were. Make it something that you can like take pictures with, that can be visible, that like celebrates these people, not just.
Here's a brick we're throwing in the ground that you know drunk people are But That's basically what the Walk of Fame is right now.
So, hopefully, they do something better with those plaques because. It's weak. Have you been to the new Brave Stadium? Yeah. There's a really great exhibit.
It's incredible. It's really well done. It's by home plate, kind of by home plate. I think it's down one of the lines, like right off home plate, but yeah. I felt a little guilty.
Uh Like I was gonna get my dad was gonna have a lightning bolt shoved up my ass for that because He refused to recognize. the existence of the Atlanta Breaks. Um He was pretty pissed off about that. And that's actually... Yeah.
It was my dad being pissed off about the Braves. how I ended up befriending Bob Euchre early in my career. Like when I was a kid, I told my dad I wanted a Braves hat for my birthday. He said, fuck you, like literally. Trido.
eight ten year old me fuck you um Didn't understand it. My birthday came. He got me a Braves hat with an M on it. I'm like, what the hell is this? And then he got me Bob Beege's book on the Milwaukee Braves, which I read cover to cover in a weekend, became obsessed with the Milwaukee Braves.
Remember, he took me to Family Sports Cards on 76th and I want to say Capital. And so I could pick out a card, and I wanted an Eddie Matthews card that was like 60 bucks at the time. He said, no, here, this guy, Johnny Logan, $5, you can have that. And I kept the Johnny Logan card. in my wallet until like my wallet got stolen in my 20s.
But Yeah.
So when I went to see the Braves thing, I was like a little hesitant 'cause I thought my dad was gonna It was right after he passed, so I thought maybe he was going to have an angel shovel lightning. bolt in my ass, but I went, I checked it out. It was pretty cool. They talked about the Braves' time in Milwaukee, but didn't really talk about Milwaukee much, which is why I'm kind of impressed that the Milwaukee Braves Association has their monument here. Um, like Milwaukee does more for the Braves than the Braves do for the Braves.
So That was pretty cool.
Well, we did Braves versus Braves. Remember that night? Yeah, I remember that. I think Ben Sheets pitched in that game. Dumbest shit ever.
I love those uniforms. Not against the fucking Braves. I know. I know. It was dumb.
It was dumb. It was Braves versus Braves. Should have done against like the Cubs or something, a team that you played and beat the shit out of when you were the Braves. People don't realize How good that franchise was. Like everyone knows, you know, the 57 World Series.
And then in 58, they went back. but they were a game away. from the World Series in 56, and then they lost the playoff. in 59 and they almost had four straight pennants. I mean, it was insane how good that franchise was.
And You know, and they got kind of screwed because. guys in Chicago bought the team and you know, wanting to go to Atlanta because there was nothing for miles and miles and miles. you know, there's nothing you could do to compete with that, but Milwaukee Braves, like if you look at the history. That was sheer pandemonium like Milwaukee set the record for National League attendance. in 1954.
They had two point, I want to say six million people. And they did that in a season with seventy seven home games. in a stadium that held like thirty six maybe thirty eight thousand people and in a league that had not one but two teams in New York City. That's insane. 2.6 million.
In 1954. And they smoke the rest of the National League. That's my little history lesson there. That's why, if you're going to do, if you're going to steal a franchise from a city, do it when they've only been there for one year. Yeah.
Because then nobody will be like. Who's dad's telling them fuck you if they want a Seattle pilot's hat? And a lot of brewers. Oh, my last conversation I had with the old man when he was in the hospital at the end. He reminded me of a couple of things.
Uh Fuck Bartholomew. Fuck Kareem. And game six of the 82 World Series never should have been played. Those are the three things he wanted me to remember. Who's the first one?
Giamatti? Bartholomew. Bill Bartholomew, the guy that bought the Braves and moved them. Oh, okay. I don't mean that.
I don't fucking know. My dad came to the country when the Braves were like in their heyday. And like. That's where he learned how to speak English. That's where he learned how to swear.
He told me. Like, He would go to games all the time. His dad, my grandfather worked at the factory. Got tickets all the time. He's from the old country.
He didn't know what the hell baseball was, but. Took my dad. My dad fell in love with it. Would go all the time, sneak in all the time. Like he was.
Huge breakfast.
Well, that's a very, I'm going to end on that poignant note. We got sentimental Andrew Wagner. You don't get that much. Fuck that. It's a good story.
It's a good story. FVW says great family sports card reference. Yeah, that was a classic spot. I suppose I wasted a lot of money there. No, not wasted.
You're making memories. And now that's where now I spend my money at Happy Place End. There we go. Andrew Wagner on a Wagner, wacky Wagner Winkler versus Wednesday. Enjoy the coverage tomorrow on Fox 6 and then on Saturday, who the fuck knows?
Buy your hundred-dollar subscription now just in case. Should I go tomorrow? My wife asked me if I'm going to opening day. I said, I'm not going to the game. I might do bullshit in the parking lot, but I don't have an idea.
I want to know what a shit show it's going to be just getting in and out of there with all the construction. Oh, it was bad. Even yesterday, we had to go bob and weave and we're I avoided the highway, so I went on Wisconsin, which then that was backed up, and then My old place was exactly one mile. down the freeway. Like literally, I live right next to the freeway and I was exactly one mile.
And then if you accidentally get off the wrong way, there's no exits to turn around. It's fucked. Hop a bar shuttle, people. Hop a bar shuttle. And that way you can't give the the brewers that that crack money they crave for all the parking.
Can you do an impression of Tom Izzo yelling at his kid trying to teach him to play mini hoops at Chuck E. Cheese? I can't do it, Tomizzo. My Sean McVay, my Tomizzo, I can't. I don't, Bobby, I will.
But I don't have it down yet. I'm not comfortable. All I can do right now is my Sean McVay. That's it. Holy crap, there's a lot of comments here.
I just saw that tab. Yeah, just comment tab. People pay attention to this stuff. Oh yeah, dozens at a time. Love it.
Hey, I went to Miller Park yesterday. I took not one, but two pictures with listeners. I love that you still call it Miller Park, and that's why I laugh at like. people losing their shit over the whole Lambo Field thing. Like Who cares if they sell the naming rights?
No one's going to call it. Whatever they pay to name it anyway. Who gives a shit? Let the franchise take the money that it needs or claims to need or will need. and then keep calling it whatever the hell that you want.
Like, what is the big deal? I don't get it. I don't get it. But then again. I'm not an owner.
I I think I think the problem with that is, what did I pay for then? If you're going to make me pay, like, You paid what did you pay for? What are you talking about? What did you pay for your stock? Looking for a souvenir to hang on the wall.
No, I paid to keep the Packers viable financially.
Well, didn't the stock sale go towards like renovating the stadium? Yeah, I paid for the south end zone seats. Yeah. Like, I get it. I mean.
There's only so many ways you can generate revenue, especially when you're privately owned, you don't have. the billionaire owner to like write checks. You can't keep turning and having a stock sale every five years because then it devalues the already worthless stock. Like, you got to look at every possible thing.
So, if they call it, you know. Lambeau Field at Quick Trip Stadium. Fucking deal. Like, who I would rather, honestly, though, I would rather. I would rather them change the whole name.
I don't like blah, blah, at mile high. I don't. I think that's, I don't, I don't like that. But you know what? I mean, and then that was, that was actually the example that I was going to use.
I mean people still call it Mile high, even though it's arrowheads another one but mile high. Arrowhead got changed like Who gives a shit? If it's a couple million dollars that comes in and Or like the Boston Gardens, the T D Garden. Yeah, see that It's just the garden. I mean it As long as the Bucks don't do something or the Packers don't do stupid something stupid like the Bucks, where they basically told all the local people that wanted naming rights, oh, we're going for international whatever.
And then Dan Shaney Insurance Field at Lambeau Field Park. Yeah. God. Lambo Park Field. No, I don't understand.
Like, no one's going to call it whatever they paid in it. No one ever calls it by whatever, and they're not expecting you to call it. Have to They're paying the money so it gets used on the broadcast. They're paying the money so it gets used so they get the advertising. And these companies do that knowing that everyone is going to lose their shit and still call it whatever stadium.
We still call it Miller Park. Hell, I sometimes call it County Stadium. Who cares? Still call it the Marcus Ambathy. My friends and I always joke at Summerfest.
I call it the Pap stage, the old style stage, and the Miller stage, just for shits and giggles. Sell the naming rights. Make the money. Call it whatever the hell you want. I still call us journalists and broadcasters.
I still call us assholes. But Andrew Wagner. Thank you for stopping into the Winklerverse. It was a pleasure. Let's do it again.
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