The Milwaukee Brewers in 2020 will slide into their 50th year of baseball with a new-and-improved logo, uniforms, and championship optimism to boot.
The franchise on Monday unveiled the highly anticipated return of its iconic “Ball-in-Glove” logo in front of a crowd of community leaders, high-profile guests and baseball greats who gathered at Miller Park’s SKYY Lounge to celebrate the upcoming 50th anniversary season.
“Ball-in-Glove” has remained a fan favorite since it was first introduced in 1978. After some minor tweaking, a “modernized” version of that design is now the team’s primary mark as a tribute to its fans, said Mark Attanasio, principal owner of the Brewers.Â
“For 50 years, we’ve had the support of the most loyal fans in baseball right here at home,” said Attanasio. “Our fans have a deeply rooted respect for the history of our team and the community bonds that we developed over the course of time.”
As part of this season’s new look, players will don a set of new uniforms featuring designs and accents from their historic uniforms and Wisconsin-themed patches– a state outline and a wheat ball– signifying the team’s longtime home. Current Brewers Ryan Braun, Keston Hiura, Brent Suter and Brandon Woodruff made appearances at Monday’s event to debut the new garb.
Attanasio said talks of a new logo started in 2015, when the franchise was working to rebuild its team on the field. But it was later decided that its 50th anniversary would be the target launch of a new logo.
“When we were talking about doing this in 2015, I didn’t want to introduce a new logo that would simply divert attention from a bad team,” he said. “I wanted an exciting new logo and an excited team.”
Attanasio explained that upon taking over as the team’s principal owner in 2005 he was inundated with suggestions and ideas from fans– the top one being to bring back the original “Ball-in-Glove” logo.
He didn’t want to retire the team’s then-five-years-old primary logo, but he listened to fans’ input and brought back the “Ball-in-Glove” as an alternate mark the following year.Â
The Brewers adopt their revised historic brand on the heels of two playoff seasons.
“We’ve put together a logo as an answer to our fans,” said Craig Counsell, manager of the Brewers. “This is what the fans created.”
The “Ball-in-Glove” logo was the brainchild of the late Tom Meindel, who submitted the design to the Brewers’ logo contest while attending UW-Eau Claire. Meindel passed away last year, but his wife Elaine Meindel was in attendance at Monday’s event.
The logo was redesigned by Rodney Richardson, founder of Hattiesburg, Mississippi-based RARE Design, who drew inspiration from Meindel’s original design and collected input from stakeholders, said Attanasio.
“This was a special process to be a part of for the Milwaukee Brewers and their fans,” said Richardson. “Our goal was to develop a brand identity that depicted the story of the Brewers and their fans and characteristics of the city and state they call home. The result is a new look for the team which represents the history of this franchise and the vision for its future.”
The Brewers also kicked off year-long 50th anniversary celebrations with the reopening of its field-level team store at Miller Park. Hundreds of fans stood in line on Monday night to purchase the team’s new jerseys and walk away with player autographs and free giveaways.
The store is hosting similar special events all week. Fans who visit the store from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. can expect perks such as a chance to win free tickets, free hot chocolate and cider, and other memorabilia.
