In advance of the World Series, some people have started campaigning for a goofy idea that’s "juuuuust a bit outside."
A petition has been created to have Brewers broadcaster Bob Uecker replace FOX’s Joe Buck for the matchup between the long-suffering Cleveland Indians and the even longer-suffering Chicago Cubs. More than 15,000 baseball fans had signed it on Change.org, as of Monday morning.
Uecker famously played fictional Cleveland announcer Harry Doyle in the 1989 hit comedy "Major League," providing the play-by-play for the Indians’ rise from laughable to triumphant, as well as some of most memorably hilarious quotes in any sports movie.
With the real-life Indians making it to the World Series, "Major League"-lovers want to hear Uecker over Buck, who’s been calling the Series for FOX for two decades but is not the most popular broadcaster among some fans.
The 82-year-old Uecker, beloved in Milwaukee and across MLB, just finished his 45th season in the Brewers’ radio booth.
Because of the tortured histories of the Indians and Cubs – Cleveland hasn’t won the championship since 1948; Chicago hasn’t had a title since 1908 – this year’s World Series is already producing a lot of buzz. Controversial actor Charlie Sheen, who portrayed pitcher Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn in "Major League," requested to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before a game in Cleveland but was denied by Major League Baseball. The Cubs’ playoff run has ignited social media and earned the attention of celebrities and politicians hoping the Lovable Losers finally end their notorious Billy Goat Curse.
Because of the broadcast contracts involved, it will never happen, of course. But what do you think, Milwaukee fans? Would you even want to hear Bob Uecker call a World Series in which the Brewers weren’t playing?
Born in Milwaukee but a product of Shorewood High School (go ‘Hounds!) and Northwestern University (go ‘Cats!), Jimmy never knew the schoolboy bliss of cheering for a winning football, basketball or baseball team. So he ditched being a fan in order to cover sports professionally - occasionally objectively, always passionately. He's lived in Chicago, New York and Dallas, but now resides again in his beloved Brew City and is an ardent attacker of the notorious Milwaukee Inferiority Complex.
After interning at print publications like Birds and Blooms (official motto: "America's #1 backyard birding and gardening magazine!"), Sports Illustrated (unofficial motto: "Subscribe and save up to 90% off the cover price!") and The Dallas Morning News (a newspaper!), Jimmy worked for web outlets like CBSSports.com, where he was a Packers beat reporter, and FOX Sports Wisconsin, where he managed digital content. He's a proponent and frequent user of em dashes, parenthetical asides, descriptive appositives and, really, anything that makes his sentences longer and more needlessly complex.
Jimmy appreciates references to late '90s Brewers and Bucks players and is the curator of the unofficial John Jaha Hall of Fame. He also enjoys running, biking and soccer, but isn't too annoying about them. He writes about sports - both mainstream and unconventional - and non-sports, including history, music, food, art and even golf (just kidding!), and welcomes reader suggestions for off-the-beaten-path story ideas.
