Being a Seattle baseball fan has been a tough go over the decades as the current franchise is one of just a handful in professional sports that has never competed for a Championship, let alone won a trophy. Last season was a close call when they were once again within one game of making it to the World Series before Toronto held them at bay.
Milwaukee was looking for a team to replace their Braves after they packed up and moved to Atlanta after the 1965 season and they found a bargain when the Seattle Pilots became available for the equivalent of pizza money a few years later in 1969.
The Pilots became the Brewers, and just like the Mariners, the team was a fun watch but enjoyed limited success. Finally, in 1982 the Brew Crew made it to the Fall Classic but ran into Whitey Herzog and the St. Louis Cardinals.
It was a little ironic that we lived in St Louis back then as my Dad retired from the Navy and went to work for McDonnell – Douglas in STL. That company would later be swallowed by Boeing, the Seattle based company that led to the team being named the Pilots.
In typical Seattle, baseball fashion, the Brewers would need 50+ years to finally drink champagne in the locker room. But for tonight and the purpose of closing out this book on a lifetime of softball and baseball stories, we will reflect back to the great year of 1969 and celebrate a Seattle World Series title !
