Milwaukee County Stadium

Milwaukee County Stadium stood just off of Interstate-94 in Milwaukee for almost 50 years before it was demolished in 2001 to make room for the new $400 million retractable roof home of the Milwaukee Brewers. County Stadium was home to the Milwaukee Braves from 1953 until the team moved to Atlanta in 1965. It stood idle for five years until the Seattle Pilots franchise was purchased by Allan H. "Bud" Selig and Edmund Fitzgerald on April 1, 1970. The team, which was renamed to "Brewers" because of the city's brewing industry, played its first game, a 12-0 loss to the California Angels, on April 7, 1970. The stadium's first game was an exhibition between the Braves and the Boston Red Sox on April 6, 1953, exactly 48 years to the day before the Brewers opened Miller Park against the Cincinnati Reds. County Stadium may best be remembered by the giant beer stein in center field in which mascot Bernie Brewer used to slide into after each Brewer home run. Helfaer Field, a little league park built by the team, now occupies part of the old County Stadium site.

[edit] The Stadium

"It's not Ebbetts Field or Wrigley Field or Fenway Park, but in it's own way County Stadium produced a lot of great moments in American sports over the last 4 1/2 decades," said Selig about the stadium. County Stadium is referred to by ballparks.com as "an old park without an old park's character." Its gray exterior was a less than spectacular sight from I-94 and its obstructed-view seats added to its anti-mystique. Though this may be true, County Stadium was a staple in Milwaukee for almost 50 years and home to three World Series teams and one World Champion. It also hosted the Green Bay Packers for two to three games every season for 40 years.

[edit] World Series at County Stadium

In 1957, the Milwaukee Braves beat the New York Yankees, 5-0, in Game 7 of the World Series to become World Champions in front of over 61,000 fans. Lew Burdette was named Series MVP after tossing three complete game victories in the series with a 0.67 earned run average.

The next year, the Yankees got their revenge at County Stadium in another Game 7, coming back from a 3-1 series deficit to become World Champs.

In 1982, the Brewers won three straight games at County Stadium to win the ALCS over the Angels and make the franchise's first and only trip to the World Series, which they lost 4-3 to the St. Louis Cardinals despite holding a 3-2 advantage heading into Game 6.

[edit] Facts

• On April 30, 1961, Willie Mays becomes the ninth player in history to hit four home runs, doing it against the Braves. Coincidently, it marked the fourth time that winning pitcher Billy Loes has been involved in a game in which a player hit four homers.
• Cecil Fielder is credited as the only player to ever hit a home run completely out of the park. His September 14, 1991 blast, estimated at 502 feet, landed in the back of a pick-up truck. Fielder's son Prince is now the Brewers' first basemen.
• On June 21, 1993, six inches of rain fall in a short period of time, flooding County Stadium to the third row and completely submerging the dugouts.
• On June 26, 1996, Pat Meares of the Pittsburgh Pirates likely became the first player to participate in the Klement's Sausage Race, winning the event as the bratwurst. Meares was on the disabled list with an injured hand at the time.

[edit] Major League

The movie "Major League," starring Charlie Sheen, Corbin Bernsen and Tom Berenger was filmed using the inside of County Stadium in 1989. Though the movie was about the Cleveland Indians, exterior shots were taken of Cleveland's Municipal Stadium and interior shots were of County Stadium--clearly distinguishable by the speaker tower in center field. Milwaukee radio broadcaster, former Milwaukee Brave and Mr. Baseball Bob Uecker played Indians' announcer Harry Doyle in the movie, and Pete Vuckovich, who won the Cy Young Award in 1982 with the Brewers, played Yankees' home run threat, Clue Haywood.