Outside Miller Park, Throngs Arrive For Baseball’s Renewal

Major League Baseball returned to Wisconsin this afternoon, as the Milwaukee Brewers played their home opener. It was the annual rebirth of many people having fun, and others trying to earn a dollar.

Count a man who gave his name as Mike as one of those having fun. Despite temperatures only in the upper 30s, Mike said tailgating in the stadium parking lot for more than three hours was still a good time, with the weather better than during some openers: “Two years ago it was worse. Two years ago it was snowing and raining, and 30-mile-per-hour winds. So [it’s] not too bad.”

But opening day is not just about consuming beer and brats. For some people, it is about helping other people consume – helpers like Joe, the shuttle driver from Karma Bar, who was dropping off a van-load of fans: “It’s a great day, and we get a lot of people that come in. It really helps for people not drinking and driving. It’s for the patrons of our bar, so it’s a great added bonus.”

Nearby, a woman named Robin was sorting through a trash can, in search of empty aluminum beer cans that will bring some cash at her local recycling center: “Very important. I come all the time to do this. I go in, watch the game; come back out, collect some cans.”

Robin’s “can count” for the rest of the year may depend on how well the Brewers do and how many folks come back to Miller Park.

There are optimists like Deb: “I’m always optimistic. It’s opening day, you have to be! Everyone’s zero-and-zero, so why not?

Then there are the cautious fans, like this man who expects the team to lose as many games as they win: “Five hundred [win percentage], maybe. Not enough pitching, not enough pitching.”

One thing that may encourage more fans to come to Miller Park: a roof that closes on chilly days like today.