Milwaukee: Supposedly the Most Undesirable Place to Play Pro Sports
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by user Coreyisarealboy
First, Gary Sheffield, after being drafted with the No. 6 pick of the 1986 Draft, tanks his first four years in the Majors as a Milwaukee Brewer, hitting .259 with 21 home runs and 133 RBIs during his tenure, only to bat .330 with 33 homers and 100 RBIs, receiving his first Silver Slugger, an All-Star bid and two first place votes for the 1992 National League MVP in his first season away from Milwaukee.
Then came Dirk Nowitzki, whose refusal to play in Milwaukee forced the Bucks to trade away his rights in the 1998 Draft for Robert Traylor.
And, though there are probably plenty more, then came along Yi Jianlian, the seven-foot Chinese phenom who would not even participate in a workout for the Bucks.
So, I ask, why is Milwaukee so undesirable to play in?
Sure, it's cold in the winter, it's bloody friggin' muggy in the summer and the few feet of snow the city and surrounding areas receive in the winter make for some interesting driving conditions.
Sure, the night scene isn't quite Miami or Los Angeles, it was best known in the 90's as the home of a serial killer and the people there are generally viewed as being fat, drunk hicks.
Sure, the state that Milwaukee calls its home was the place Bartleby and Loki were sent to instead of Hell in the movie Dogma. (--"They were sent to Hell?" --"Worse...Wisconsin.")
But Milwaukee is far more appealing than most think. They just never gave it a chance.
Despite being called a small market, Milwaukee is home to nearly 600,000 people, good enough to rank 19th in the United States. Milwaukee County and the five counties surrounding it are home to over 1.7 million potential sports fans.
Yes, that's 1.7 million people dying for their teams to finally bring in someone the population of Wisconsin can idolize. Look at how the area has reacted to the Brewers this year. I'm not a fan of ballot stuffing for the All-Star game by the big markets or the popularity contest it has become, but one Brewer fan said he filled out and handed in 10,000 ballots with chads of Fielder, Hardy and Estrada punched.
The fact that names like Estrada, Weeks and Jenkins are even amongst the leading vote getters at their position is a testament to the amount of support the city and the teams' fans have given.
So, Yi doesn't want to play in Milwaukee? Why? This could be a match made in heaven. Think of how many Yi jerseys will be sold to Bucks fans. Look at what Yao did to Houston. This is a team, despite its obvious amount of talent in Andrew Bogut and Michael Redd, in need of a savior. They stunk last year.
The pick itself may have been a head-scratcher for many. A team with two young big men cemented in the starting lineup picking up another seven-footer, one who wouldn't even workout for the team, no less. But it makes sense to me.
But the Bucks can't stop here. They need to make a run at Chauncey Billups, and I don't care how much money they offer him. With immediate success, Yi almost undoubtedly will begin to feel at home in Milwaukee. Wisconsin fans can make anyone feel at home with a little loyalty.
Maybe GM Larry Harris can pull some strings and arrange a dinner for Yi and Robin Yount and Brett Favre. Or maybe even Redd will do. After all, he turned down a chance to play for his home state Cleveland Cavaliers and LeBron James to stay in Milwaukee for another six years.
Something can be said about money, sure, but something can also be said for those You-scratch-our-backs-we'll-scratch-yours times. Wisconsinites certainly do have the itch.
