The Milwaukee Brewers have never won a World Series, and the team has taken the pennant a single time since its inception as a Major League expansion club in 1969. Yet, fans love their Brewers, buying baseball tickets to see the team play even when it’s losing.

The team actually spent its first year in Seattle, as the Pilots, but was brought to Milwaukee for the 1970 season through the efforts of baseball commissioner Bud Selig, who also owned the team. Renamed the Brewers, in honor of the city’s longstanding beer-brewing tradition, the team settled into the Milwaukee County Stadium. The team switched fields in 2001, when Brewers tickets sales opened for the new Miller Park. This state of the art 43,000 seat ballpark features a retractable roof to prevent the early games of the season from being snowed out.

1982 was the only year of winning magic for the Brewers, when the team took the American League pennant. But fans have had plenty of reasons to buy Brewers tickets over the years, namely the great players who have graced the Milwaukee ballpark. Two Brewers have been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Third baseman Paul Molitor spent a dozen years playing for the Brewers and thrilled fans with his hitting streaks, including a 39-game streak in 1987. Shortstop Robin Yount, nicknamed “The Kid”, started with the Brewers at the age of 18 and played in Milwaukee throughout his 20-year career. He won the Gold Glove and Most Valuable Player awards in 1982, and was named MVP again in 1989. Legend Hank Aaron spent a couple of years playing for the Brewers, in 1975-76, and the amazing pitcher Rollie Fingers played for the team from 1981-85.

Though the team hasn’t achieved many of the hallmarks of greatness in baseball, the Brewers do have moments in the spotlight. The team was featured in the 2004 comedy “Mr. 3000”, in which star Bernie Mac is a former Brewers player who returns to play for the team and recapture his hitting title. Veteran Brewers announcer Bob Uecker, a former Major Leaguer, has enjoyed parts in commercials, a TV series, and as the announcer in the 1989 film “Major League.” That film was shot at the County Stadium, some of it during a Brewers game, so long-time Brewers fans may see themselves in the stands in the movie.

Long-suffering fans of the team are hoping the Brewers are turning around, now that the team is under new ownership. In 2005, the team finally achieved its first .500 season in more than a decade. Fans are buying baseball tickets and filling Miller Park with optimism for continued improvement.