Michael Dillon made the Bratwurst out of foam rubber, contact cement and spray paint. He practiced in it once. A Milwaukee-based graphic designer, Dillon had convinced the Brewers to turn an on-screen cartoon played in the stadium into a live-action sausage race. On June 27,1993,he wore it onto the field at Milwaukee County Stadium, raced Dan Necci as the Italian sausage and Jeff Paul as the Polish sausage and won.
It became an institution, but it took 33 years to finally get the Milwaukee Brewers' racing sausages to the World Series.
They finally ran in the Fall Classic Friday night.
In the middle of the sixth inning in Game 1 at American Family Field, the sausages, which now include chorizo and hot dog, bumbled around the field. The last time
the Brewers were in the World Series came in 1982, more than a decade before Dillion pitched his idea and the racing sausages became part of the game in Milwaukee.
For the record, the Italian sausage won the Brewers' first World Series sausage race. The Brewers won Game 1 3-2 over the Tampa Bay Rays and take a one-game lead into Saturday night's Game 2 over the Rays.
How to watch the Rays vs. Brewers World Series Game 2
- Date: Saturday, Oct. 24
- Time: 8 p.m.
- Where: American Family Field, Milwaukee
- TV: Fox
- Pitchers: Drew Rasmussen (Rays) vs. Logan Henderson (Brewers)
When is the Brewers sausage race during World Series Game 2
Middle of the sixth inning, same as every Brewers home game.
First pitch is at 8 p.m. ET, so figure on roughly two hours after that, depending on how long the pitchers take.
Five racers line up on the warning track near the third-base dugout, sprint around home plate and finish toward first base. That sounds simple until you try it. The costumes are about 7 feet tall and top-heavy, and the runners see out of a hole about eight inches wide. Sausages fall. A lot.
Most of the runners are team employees, and the Brewers won't say who. Others have had a chance, including several visiting beat writers, television reporters and, according to the New York Times' Prince Fielder's wife, two sons and his wife's cousin have donned the sausage costumes.
Who are the Racing Sausages?
The sausages each have their own personality -- and name.
- Brett, the Bratwurst: an original and the winner of the first-ever race in 1993
- Stosh, the Polish Sausage: an original
- Guido, the Italian Sausage: an original and now the winner of the first World Series race
- Frankie Furter, the Hot Dog: joined a couple of years after the first race
- Cinco, the Chorizo: debuted in 2006, in a sombrero as part of a Hispanic heritage celebration, then had to wait until 2007 to run full-time, because MLB doesn't allow teams to add mascots midseason.
Brewers sausage race history
It started as a cartoon on the County Stadium scoreboard: a Bratwurst, a Polish and an Italian racing on the video board. Dillion pitched doing it live. Gabe Paul Jr., the team's vice president of operations, wasn't sold at first, according to Dillion.
But eventually he said yes and it became a regular, beloved event at every Brewers game by 2000.
Read more on the Milwaukee Brewers most famous mascots.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Brewers sausages waited 33 years for World Series race, watch the Fall Classic sprint
