Miller Park is Milwaukee [OPINION]

When you think of Milwaukee, what are some of the first things that come to mind? Is it the lake? We do have a good one. Maybe you think of our many festivals. We are known for a lot of those. Or maybe, just maybe, it’s the beer. We do have the nickname “Brew City,” after all. So then why should the iconic stadium for Major League Baseball’s Milwaukee Brewers get its name changed from Miller Park to something American Family Insurance gets to pick?

Sure, I get it. Money is a big part of it. Teams need money to buy players and they need expensive players to be a good team, usually. And American Family Insurance just happened to offer the most cash for the naming rights. But one could argue that the name “Miller Park” is a name for a stadium and team so iconic to this city that it should never be changed.

Miller Brewing Company is one of the most famous businesses to come out of this city. They offer a national brand of beer, after all. They’re the Pepsi to Budweiser’s Coca Cola. They have a storied history going all the way back to 1855, started by a German immigrant to Wisconsin. Now tell me, what is more Milwaukee than that?

There are examples of other sports teams forgoing the name change to honor the city or the franchise instead. Would anyone ever consider renaming Fenway Park or Lambeau Field. Sure, these stadiums have been around much longer than Miller Park has. But Miller Park has stood here since 2001. That’s nearly 20 years. Cars are considered classics if they last 20 years. Why shouldn’t a well-built and well-named stadium get the same treatment?

There’s even a fan-made petition running around online to demand the Brewer’s owner keep Miller Park’s original name. The baseball team is called the Brewers, after all. Should they really play ball in a park named after some insurance company? Beer is as much a part of this team as it is a part of this city. And it should be celebrated, not bartered away at the first signs of a bigger paycheck. Sometimes a name is just too good to pass by. Miller Park is one such name. And at least 90,000 fans seem to agree.

Beer and Cheese is what makes Wisconsin, Wisconsin. Who thinks of insurance when they think of the dairy state? The stadium itself sells beers from plenty of local breweries. Leinenkugel’s even makes a special brew you can only buy in the stadium, like Taco Bell’s Baja Blast Mountain Dew. How cool is that? The Brewer’s old mascot is barrel man, a cartoon keg with a great slugging percentage. Changing the name of the park wouldn’t take these aspects away, but it also wouldn’t be the same. If they’re willing to do this to the city and the fans, what else would might they do?