Oct 5, 2008 - 12:28 AM
0 shoutsBy David Cotey PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer
As the commissioner of baseball, Bud Selig is supposed to be an unbiased supporter of the game.
But on Saturday, Selig could not help but beam with pride as the team he formerly owned, the Milwaukee Brewers, hosted their first postseason game in 26 years.
"I'm neutral, and I'm supposed to be, but it was a thrill for me to walk in here today," Selig told reporters before Game Three of the National League Division Series between the Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies at Miller Park. "It's a wonderful day for Milwaukee and Wisconsin, a very emotional day for a lot of people. And I hope I have the opportunity to throw the first pitch (Sunday)."
With the Brewers capturing a 4-1 win Saturday, Selig will get the opportunity to throw out the ceremonial first pitch.
Baseball funnyman and longtime Milwaukee radio announcer Bob Uecker drew that assignment for Game Three, unofficially kicking off a party for which Milwaukee had waited nearly three decades.
"It was awesome. The first inning is something I'll definitely remember for a long time, just being out there and hearing the crowd," Brewers starting pitcher Dave Bush said. "I took a step back and tried to take it all in. I'm glad we gave them another game tomorrow."
The Brewers, a longtime symbol of futility in the sport, had not been to the postseason since reaching the World Series in 1982. In the latter half of that 26-year wait, Milwaukee endured 12 straight losing seasons from 1993 to 2004, including a 106-loss season in 2002.
But on Saturday a sellout crowd of 43,992 packed Miller Park, waved their white rally towels and stood and cheered every out the Brewers recorded. Milwaukee's victory helped erase memories of what had been the longest postseason drought in professional sports.
"For me, it was probably the first night I've ever really understood that homefield advantage is pretty important, because those fans were awesome for us," Brewers shortstop J.J. Hardy said. "We could tell, when their pitchers weren't throwing strikes, it was getting louder and just making that atmosphere good for us."
To put in perspective how long Milwaukee had waited for a playoff game, six of the players on the postseason roster were not born the last time the Brewers hosted a playoff game, which was October 17, 1982, in Game Five of the Worlds Series against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Four current Milwaukee players were 7-months-old or younger.
"You've got to give credit to the '82 team and what they did and how far they went, but we're trying to make a name for ourselves," said Brewers infielder Bill Hall, the longest-tenured current player. "We want to have a memory for ourselves. That's what this team has been trying to do all season, from spring training on."
Brewers infielder Craig Counsell, who was born in suburban Milwaukee and grew up a Brewers fan, understood the significance of Saturday's contest.
"It was a great atmosphere early in the game and I think (the fans) gave us a boost, I really do," Counsell said. "It's nice to give them a chance to come back (Sunday) and do it again. That's a great thing. That's what we wanted to do today. We wanted to make it a great weekend for them."
It was fitting that baseball's commissioner was in attendance Saturday.
Selig, a Milwaukee native, purchased the Seattle Pilots in 1970 and immediately moved them to Milwaukee.
He was the mastermind behind Miller Park and as commissioner - a position he has held since 1992 - he introduced revenue sharing to help even the playing field for small market teams such as the Brewers.
"There is no question that everything that we did in the '90s, as painful as the 90s were, we've achieved what we set out to achieve," Selig said. "Is the system perfect? No ? but you have more competitive balance. For a small market team to win, it was almost impossible."
And then there is the wild card that Selig introduced in 1995. The Brewers clinched this year's wild card on the final day of the regular season when they beat the Chicago Cubs and the Florida Marlins defeated the New York Mets.
"I've had lots of fans tell me thanks for the wild card," Selig said. "It's fair, and nobody can say that the Milwaukee club this year that won 90 games shouldn't be in the playoffs. Because of course they should, and they deserve to be."
