No 12-0 loss had ever felt better to a city.
For the fact that the Milwaukee Brewers even had the opportunity to lose a Major League game 12-0 meant that the city had its own big league baseball team for the first time since 1965, when the Braves left for Atlanta and left a bitter taste in Milwaukee’s collective mouth.
Instead, 36,707 got the chance to taste bratwurst and beer to see their new team, the Brewers. They had six days to buy those tickets after the Seattle Pilots officially became the Brewers.
New stars like Tommy Harper and Mike Hegan became household names, even as their team only garnered four hits against California Angels hurler Andy Messersmith.
Lew Krausse and four other Brewers pitchers didn’t do so well, giving up a dozen runs in Milwaukee’s first home game.
But in the long run, it didn’t matter. The Brewers were here. Baseball, the big league kind, was back on a permanent basis.
It has stayed here for 50 years, and it is set to stay for many more.
