By Jim Owczarski Sports Editor Published Apr 07, 2012 at 8:00 AM Photography: David Bernacchi

As the Milwaukee Brewers proved last year, they know how to have fun. Many are active on Twitter and in the community, and nearly all of them have had some interesting experiences both in the game, and off the field.

Here are some fun facts about some of your favorite players, and some of the new faces.

Alex Gonzalez
Age: 35
Need to know: In 2011 was third in NL in fielding percentage and home runs for a shortstop.
Fun fact: Is not the Alex Gonzalez of the Chicago Cubs who committed a monumental error in Game 5 of the NLCS against the Florida Marlins – on which this Alex Gonzalez played.

Corey Hart
Age: 30
Need to know: Has committed four errors over his last 275 games.
Fun fact: Is not Canadian and did not sing "Sunglasses at Night." Has partnered with the Wisconsin Dental Association to "Stomp Out Spit Tobacco." Has also helped the Brewers Community Foundation support the Girls of Summer softball league.

Norichika Aoki
Age: 30
Need to know: A career .329 hitter and 3-time batting champ and 7-time All-Star in seven full seasons in Japan.
Fun fact: Last name translates to "blue tree." His wife, Sachi Ohtake, was a sports anchor for TV Tokyo from 2006-10.

Carlos Gomez
Age: 26
Need to know: Has been caught stealing five times in Brewers career (in 39 attempts).
Fun fact: has been clocked in the 40-yard dash in 4.29 seconds and stole second base in 3.1 seconds in his first game as a Minnesota Twin.

Travis Ishikawa
Age: 28
Need to know: Won a World Series ring with the San Francisco Giants in 2010, making one start in the Fall Classic.
Fun fact: Met his wife Rochelle after being hit in the mouth by a pitch as a member of the Class A San Jose team in the Giants organization. She was working in the dental office, and he invited her to a game but never got her phone number. During the game, he homered, and she left a message with the team’s trainer to congratulate him and essentially asked him out. That was in 2004.

Zack Greinke
Age: 28
Need to know: The Brewers went 21-7 when he started.
Fun fact: Enjoys playing World of Warcraft and fantasy football. Helped the Brewers evaluate pitching prospects prior to the amateur draft last summer. First major league victory came against the now-defunct Montreal Expos in 2004.

Kameron Loe
Age: 30
Need to know: Stranded 61.8-percent of inherited runners in 2011.
Fun fact: Gave his pet boa constrictor to a fan when he left the Texas Rangers – after they sold his contract to the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of the Pacific League in Japan.
Interact: @KameronLoe

Nyjer Morgan
Age: 31
Need to know: Is a career .288 hitter in the major leagues
Fun fact: Played four years of junior hockey in Canada before switching to baseball. Has at least four other personalities, the most notable being "T Plush."
Interact: @TheRealTPlush

John Axford
Age: 29
Need to know: Has saved 70 games the last two seasons.
Fun fact: Is a Canadian but also did not sing "Sunglasses at Night." Is a former bartender and cell phone salesman.
Interact: @JohnAxford

Tim Dillard
Age: 28
Need to know: A converted starter, throws sidearm.
Fun fact: Enjoys doing impressions, including former announcer Harry Caray and national baseball reporter Tim Kurkjian.

He also is a fan of conservation.

Jim Owczarski is an award-winning sports journalist and comes to Milwaukee by way of the Chicago Sun-Times Media Network.

A three-year Wisconsin resident who has considered Milwaukee a second home for the better part of seven years, he brings to the market experience covering nearly all major and college sports.

To this point in his career, he has been awarded six national Associated Press Sports Editors awards for investigative reporting, feature writing, breaking news and projects. He is also a four-time nominee for the prestigious Peter J. Lisagor Awards for Exemplary Journalism, presented by the Chicago Headline Club, and is a two-time winner for Best Sports Story. He has also won numerous other Illinois Press Association, Illinois Associated Press and Northern Illinois Newspaper Association awards.

Jim's career started in earnest as a North Central College (Naperville, Ill.) senior in 2002 when he received a Richter Fellowship to cover the Chicago White Sox in spring training. He was hired by the Naperville Sun in 2003 and moved on to the Aurora Beacon News in 2007 before joining OnMilwaukee.com.

In that time, he has covered the events, news and personalities that make up the PGA Tour, LPGA Tour, Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Hockey League, NCAA football, baseball and men's and women's basketball as well as boxing, mixed martial arts and various U.S. Olympic teams.

Golf aficionados who venture into Illinois have also read Jim in GOLF Chicago Magazine as well as the Chicago District Golfer and Illinois Golfer magazines.