WurstTo1st

Well, I don't think there are hardly any hotels around Maryvale, not much to do either. No reason you need to avoid it though, in terms of going to the games. Where to stay? You'll get different opinions. We usually stay either in Scottsdale or Chandler area. Tucson, Arizona resident here commenting. If its your first time visiting, then you should probably stay in Scottsdale or Mesa. It is a bit more expensive, but both are very nice areas. During your first visit you might find you like Peoria or Tempe and you can branch out a bit more on future trips... Wife and I are staying in Tuscon the end of February for a work conference of hers. Renting a car and going to the first Spring Training game against the Cubs at Sloan Park and then the next day against the Rangers in Surprise. Is there anything to see/do if I were to just go to the Brewers facility in Maryvale early, before the Cubs game. Just walk around. A team store. Whatever? Being there and not knowing when I may get back guess I'd just like to see it. Unfortunately our trip won't coincide with any Brewers "home" games. Also had someone from the Phoenix area tell me that Maryvale isn't in one of the better parts of Phoenix? True? Exaggerated? Almost made it sound like it's unsafe? Find that hard to believe? As far as tickets. I bought directly through the Rangers and got first row behind the Brewers dugout for $33 each. Wife will be going to that game as well. For the Cubs game, well.....they price gouge the heck out of spring training just like they do everything else. But got a great deal on a single ticket, two rows behind the Brewers dugout, for less than face value on StubHub. So for the person who posted about going to games alone, make sure you check StubHub. Singles are often cheaper than face on the secondary market it seems.

Left about 2:00. Got there at 9:15. Actually got into the main area at about 10:45. Seemed to lack in substance this year. Missed the opening on the main stage. Caught Gantner and Yount on the interactive stage. Seemed like less memorabilia exhibitors. Management panel lasted about 20 minutes. By-product of winning I guess....which I'm all for, but too crowded, so loud you couldn't hear, and all the rest. Good event though. Always good to think baseball on a -20 day!

Agree. Wouldn't have thought Markakis would have put up numbers like that. Don't think his union brothers will be too happy with his hometown discount. https://mlb.nbcsports.com/2019/01/22/nick-markakis-i-play-a-kids-game-and-get-paid-a-lot-of-money-how-can-i-be-disappointed-with-that/

Also hoping the Crew can take a low risk, high reward, chance on a guy like this a al Wade Miley last year. While I appreciate what Miley did the second half of last year and in the post season, a 3 year $30M contract or whatever he's seeking would be a stretch.

Some have said that we will all still call it Miller Park so the 2nd naming of a stadium is worth less than the first, so in effect AmFam is wasting their money. Doesn't really matter what we as fans call it. Every time a sportswriter writes about a game it will be "The Brewers took on the Cubs at AmFam Field," live lookins on MLB Network will say, "Let's head to AmFam Field for the Brewers and Cards," TV broadcasts will be "Live from AmFam Field." I use AmFam Field, but whatever they end up call it, not promoting that name. Each one of those mentions has an exposure value related to the number of people who hear/read/see it and that's what they're paying for. Not what you and I call it. Anyone of us may feel that that BS Advertising has no effect on us individually and makes you no more likely to buy American Family Insurance, but they will tell you otherwise. How much is a 30 second spot in the Super Bowl going for this year? Just hear on MLB Network that the new deal is worth $30M over 15 years. AND.....That a GoFundMe page has been set up to save the Miller Park name seeking the $30M. So far has raised $15. Almost there! Sure most of you have seen this: https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/columnists/george-stanley/2019/01/23/hank-aaron-park-lets-find-lasting-name-we-all-can-toast/2657554002/ No one is paying naming rights for Miller Park Way, or the land that the stadium sits on. This would be a fitting honor for a Milwaukee baseball great. The tailgating experience and time spent outside of the game itself is a major part of attending a game in Milwaukee. If the grounds are called Hank Aaron Park, or Aaron Park, located on Hank Aaron Parkway, everyone has a name we can get behind regardless of what company puts their name on the building. Don't need to even go through the cumbersome effort of calling it AmFam Field at Hank Aaron Park. You're going to Hank Aaron Park and enjoying the tailgating, playground, little league field, Brewers/Braves Walls of Fame, statues, and everything else. When the game starts you head into "Corporate Behemoth Stadium."

Well.....Kind of knew this was coming eventually. Miller had a 20 year deal for naming rights due to expire soon and I doubted they were going to re-up given declining sales of "macro" brews. Sounds like they would have re-upped at their price but AmFam made a "lucrative offer." The articles I read said that Miller was paying $2.06M per year and got exposure worth $2.47M per year, or whatever it was. My guess is AmFam offered significantly more than that. Whatever I guess. I don't go there because it's called Miller Park, I go there to watch baseball. The team will still be the Brewers and I can still get a Miller beer. Miller Brewing Co. sponsoring the stadium of the hometown team called the Brewers is a natural fit, but this is the nature of pro sports. Very few stadiums hold a name for more than 10-15 years. Don't know why we would think this would be any different. If the increased revenue is used to improve the stadium, fan experience, and product on the field then I'm all for it. The Attanasio led ownership group and front office have given us every reason to believe it will be. Others have mentioned the possible connection to a uniform change. While not exact, the script M on the caps does certainly resemble the Miller M. This also coincides with Under Armor taking over the MLB uniform contract. Seems likely a uniform retooling is probably on the horizon. I just hope they don't do anything drastic if/when they make a change. I'd get behind using the current navy colored alternate caps with the ball and glove logo and that color scheme with the current script Brewers and Milwaukee. No pinstripes please! Continue the royal/pinstripe throwbacks for Friday nights. Get creative on a new alternate if you must. BTW - Joined the forum a couple of years ago and shortly after got very sick, was out of commission for quite some time and just kind of forgot about this forum. Hope to check in more regularly now.

Allow myself to reintroduce myself. I joined in April last year but fell very ill later that month (2 weeks in ICU, another 3 weeks hospitalized) after which I was just recovering and spending lost time with family so posting on a message board took a back seat. So, now I'm back. I guess a successful 2018 to me would be continuing an eye toward the future even if that means a regression win/loss-wise. It seem that last year's team really seem to gel as a unit. You'll have some subtractions, some additions, so to expect that they "take the next step" and make the playoffs may be a bit much to ask. Guys like Shaw, Thames, and Santana had career years and to expect a repeat might be a little much. (See the expectations for Villar from 2016 to 2017). Braun and his contract are a weight on this franchise. Love Braun for his place in franchise history despite his off field issues, but somehow if they can dump him and at least a portion of his contract I think is the biggest step forward they can take in the next 3 years. If they can unload half his salary for a couple of prospects, I'd be happy. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 75-85 wins with an eye toward a .500 finish is what I expect. The Cubs will be good. The Cards are going to spend and get better. We might not be quite there yet. Go Brewers!

Ha! I also have a B.J. Surhoff jersey I like to wear to games. Favorite however is Jeff Cirillo #26 - first time around with the Crew. In my younger years, and his, we bared a striking resemblance to one another. Once, in college - late '90s, I went to a game with a bunch of friends at old County Stadium and the parking attendant thought I was him. Only took a second or so to correct himself as he knew Cirillo wouldn't have been driving such a crappy car. Anyway, ode to the Brewers all time career AVG leader!

Hydrating is important. I say go for it!

Hey all, I’m new around here and this is officially my first post. Big Brewers fan since I was a wee lad in the early ‘80s. My turn ons are long walks to the Molitor lot after a Brewers win, cold Miller Lites listening to the game on warm Sunday afternoons, and well executed sac bunts. Turn offs include Chicago Cubs WS wins, pace of play initiatives, and rain delays. Anyway...sorry to resurrect this if you’re all over it, but a different spin on kind of the same type of topic. Since this is my first post ever, I really didn’t think it was my place to be starting a new thread. Where do you stand on wearing your team’s cap to a game where your team is not involved? For example, I wear my Brewers cap to Wrigley at a Cubs/Cardinals game. Because this will happen in September when my wife is at a conference in Chi-town and I plan on hitting a couple of games. We miss the Brewers by 3 days. I actually do this all the time. Angels/Red Sox in Anaheim. Pirates/Rockies in Pittsburgh. Rays/Orioles in Tampa Bay. Dodgers/Mariners in L.A. Twins/Royals in Minneapolis. Etc. You get the idea. I’ve gotten some, “Are you lost, Bro?”, “Brewers S#@K!”, and the like. For the most part just good natured ribbing, which is fine. This will be the first time I sport a Brewers lid at a game of two division rivals however. I say there’s nothing wrong with it as long as you’re not boisterously rooting against the home team. Since I wish they both could lose this won’t be a problem. But give Manfred time...He may figure out a way to make that happen! I kid!