At 6 a.m., the sun was barely up. Looking out the hotel window over historic Wisconsin Ave., Brewers fans sprinkled the streets. Vendors selling knockoff World Series Championship merch, on the corners. Lawn chairs, in the most Midwest fashion, lined the parade route.
Milwaukee had waited 69 years for this. 69 years since the last baseball-related championship celebration, and the views outside of my hotel window were just a small glimpse of the largest gathering in Wisconsin history.
Of course, for
the players and the fans, the celebration began right around 10:10 p.m. on Wednesday. Those who had travelled down to St. Petersburg had first dibs. But the real party was ready to happen in Milwaukee, nearly 1,300 miles north. First, the champs made their appearance at Lambeau Field during the Packers’ Thursday Night Football game against the Carolina Panthers.
Brandon Woodruff marched out of the tunnel, ahead of his teammates, with the Commissioner’s trophy hoisted high. Off to his left, 5-foot-9 fan favorite, Sal Frelick did the Lambeau Leap, replicating a once-Packer legend, LeRoy Butler, who he himself won multiple championships in Wisconsin. For a moment, the state of Wisconsin’s focus was shifted to the new world champs, and not the team that has brought home 13 of them.
Turn the clock to 12 hours later, and all eyes were on the Milwaukee Brewers.
Fans were ready. Fans came from all over. Signs read “I’m from Iowa.” Conversations with fans revealed that they travelled from southern Illinois; I myself, along with my wife, travelled from Michigan, all to celebrate the best moment as a fan.
Three hours before the parade began, fans were already claiming their spots along the route. For most places, it was just one person deep. As the hours ticked closer, it became deeper: two people, then three, then four. Before you knew it, fans were packed in like sardines, trying to catch a glimpse of the World Champs.
Before the champs arrived, fans got ready the only way they could: tailgating. Cases of beer flooded the streets. The smell of cooked meat filled the air, while bass from the Summerfest grounds filled it too.
Then came the parade, led by Bernie Brewer, and the sounds of fall. The University of Wisconsin-Madison Badger Marching Band marched to a Wisconsin staple, ‘Roll Out the Barrel’. Then came the voices of the summer, Sophia Minneart, Brian Anderson, and the Uecker family sitting atop a convertible.
After a short break, the champs turned the corner. It had felt as though the crowd grew in size, not only in the number of people, but in height; everyone got taller. Despite being about a half mile down the road, phones had flooded the view, as everyone wanted to capture their turn to see the champs.
Above the masses, fans had stopped on the shoulder of I-794, looking to get a pristine view of the parade. And that they did…for about three minutes, until local law enforcement had asked them to carry on.
Of the many buses carrying members of the team, the Brewers offense led the way. Up front, the captain Christian Yelich, next to him, the NLCS MVP Jake Bauers, mixed in with Brice Turang and the others. At the back of the bus, basking in his successes, was William Contreras chanting “M-V-P” to the masses.
Behind the offense was the pitching staff, downing beverages and rubbing the bald head of Aaron Ashby. Trailing them, the coaching staff, where hitting coach Daniel Vogelbach received one of the largest roars of the morning. Then the coaching staff.
As the parade wound down, the panic of not being able to get into the Summerfest grounds set in as lines of people tried to navigate the crowd.
The grounds had slightly fewer people than the parade, but the energy was just as high. As lines wrapped around merch booths and food stands, the attention shifted to the American Family Amphitheatre for the rally featuring alumni, ownership, and the champs themselves. Joining them were about 23,000 fans, grinning ear-to-ear as they got to cap off the day-long celebration.
Perfectly narrating the event, as he has for the Brewers for 20 years, was Brian Anderson. One by one, Anderson brought up members of the Brewers. It didn’t matter how long it took for the players to stumble through their words; fans were happy to cheer and chant their names.
Then the alumni showed up: Ted Simmons, Robin Yount, Rollie Fingers, and Ryan Braun. All chanting and celebrating just as hard as the players who won the World Series. Yount brought the infamous motorcycle out on the stage, Fingers hyped up the dominant bullpen, and Braun was the city’s ultimate hype man.
Sophia Minneart then took over, interviewing the World Series MVP Contreras. While the interview began in Spanish, Contreras broke out in English in an emotional manner that brought a huge uproar to the fans in attendance. Then came the rest of the team, all getting their chance to hype up the crowd and express their gratitude to Milwaukee.
No Brewers victory celebration would be complete without ‘Glory Days’ by Bruce Springsteen. Though this time, confetti and streamers rained down, making this one that much more memorable.
