Bob Uecker passed away on Thursday. He was 90. If you didn't know, the righthanded hitting Uecker posed for his baseball card batting lefty. No one noticed.
I always liked Uecker. He grew up in Milwaukee. Was the first Milwaukee native signed by the team. Played for the Braves, Cardinals, and Phillies. During the 1964 World Series he picked up a tuba during batting practice and shagged fly balls with it, beating it up beyond use. The cost was deducted from his paycheck.
Hired as an announcer by the Braves and later the Brewers, and was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. His induction speech was legendary. Frequent guest on the Tonight Show.
Starred on the sitcom Mr. Belvedere and numerous Lite Beer from Miller commercials. Wrote a book, which I own.
I own a replica his old Milwaukee Braves jersey, as well as several bobbleheads and nesting dolls. Some years recently the Brewers would have multiple Uecker giveaways.
My bobbleheads include: in Braves catching gear, a talking Harry Doyle bobblehead (his character in Major League), a figurine of his Miller Park statue. A Uecker alarm clock – when the alarm goes off, it’s Uecker yelling at you to wake up. A Uecker bottle opener. Maybe more.
Uecker made an inadvertent splash in the May 19, 2008 Sports Illustrated. In an article about a Brewers road trip, a shirtless, well sculpted 73 year old Uecker turned heads in the background of a poolside photo.
A 2013 Sports Illustrated article: The Endless Summer of Bob Uecker.
Classic Sports Illustrated photos of Uecker.
You know you’re funny when you can get Bob Gibson to smile. When a team photo was taken, Uecker and Gibson were holding hands. Carson showed it off during a Tonight Show appearance.
BOB UECKER [SABR Bio] is known as “Mr. Baseball”. In 1965 all his home runs were off Hall of Famers, and his first home run the following year was off a third Hall of Famer. Uecker homered off Gaylord Perry on 05-May and off Sandy Koufax on 24-July, then on 29-Apr-1966, he took Fergie Jenkins deep. He was the first former player to host “Saturday Night Live” on 13-Oct-1984. Jack Morris & the Tigers had beaten the Padres in the 4th G of the WS earlier that afternoon. Uecker appeared as sportswriter/sportscaster George Owens on the ABC sitcom Mr. Belvedere from 1985-1990. He appeared in the infamous beer commercials for Lite Beer from Miller. A clip from the movie Major League: click here.
I try not to have heroes. I do have people I admire and look up to. Others are people I like, that entertain me. No one is perfect. Most will disappoint somewhere along the line. Others in the Uecker category off the top of my head include Greg Maddux. Herschel Walker. Jack Nicklaus. Tiger Woods. Bobby Dews. Fred Biletnikoff. Michael Jordan. Joe Namath. Charles Barkley. Larry Bird. Maravich. Leno. Steve Martin. Martin Short. Dale Murphy. Tom Hanks. I could go on.
Speaking of, I’ve been watching several comedy specials by Nate Bargatze. Funny guy.
Behaviors of people who have few friends: constant negativity, poor listening skills, lack of empathy, overly competitive, self-focused, fear of vulnerability, inability to forgive, avoids conflict, unreliable, and lack of self-awareness. As always I post this article in an effort to learn and grow my own self. Know anyone with these traits?
MASH Ran For So Long The Showrunners Accidentally Made The Exact Same Episode Twice.
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