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New Faces Take The Field In Milwaukee Brewers Home Opener

Team Trades Experience For New Talent As It Rebuilds

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AP Photo/Richard Carson

When the Milwaukee Brewers take the field Monday at Miller Park for opening day, many of the players taking the field might not be recognizable to fans.

Veterans like former MVP Ryan Braun and catcher Jonathan Lucroy will still be in the lineup, to be sure, but the team is undergoing a rebuild after trading many top players over the last year. The Brewers are focusing more energy and resources on young prospects rather than major talent with experience in the hope of more winning seasons in the future.

That has some sports outlets, like ESPN and Sports Illustrated, predicting a less than stellar season for the Brewers. However, they also acknowledge the strategy will likely help the team down the road.

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Brewers’ broadcaster Lane Grindle said the players are aware of the pessimism, but they aren’t buying into it.

“I think there’s a belief in the locker room right now that this team is going to be much better than what people have pegged them for, which is a good thing,” Grindle said. “That’s where you want to be. That’s a confident group. They think they’ve found something that other people haven’t seen.”

Grindle said with so many new additions, there’s been a healthy dose of competition at spring training. He said that’s created a strong energy among the players.

“If the culture can stay in that good place, where everyone’s connected and locked in with each other, then when you’re going through those tough stretches, you’ll come out of them quicker. When you’re going through those great stretches, you may stay in them a bit longer,” said Grindle.

Grindle himself is a new addition to the Brewers’ organization, broadcasting on WTMJ-AM and the Brewers Radio Network. He spent the last 10 years at the University of Nebraska, calling baseball games for the Huskers. Before that, he hosted pre-game and post-game shows and was a sideline reporter for different Huskers sports.

Fans will mostly hear Grindle calling away games with Jeff Levering. He’ll also be working with Brewers and broadcasting legend Bob Uecker.

“That’s a pretty cool part about this whole situation, to be honest with you,” he said. “The chance to be around Bob Uecker, arguably the best that’s ever done this, is pretty appealing to me.”

The Brewers play the San Francisco Giants in the home opener Monday at 1:10 p.m.