DOUSMAN, Wis. — Some Milwaukee Brewers fans have been waiting 44 years to see their team win a World Series. For 91-year-old Al Will, the wait has been a lifetime.
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Long before the packed crowds at American Family Field and before the Brewers reached the World Series in 1982, Will was a little boy growing up with Milwaukee baseball.
“My grandfather took me to Borchert Field,” Will said.
It was the 1930s, and Will watched Milwaukee’s American Association Brewers play at the old ballpark.
As he got older, baseball moved even closer to home.
“There was 10 of us in a Milwaukee bungalow with one bathroom,” Will recalled. “It was at 49th and Wells, right above the stadium.”
As a teenager, Will said he and his friends sometimes found their way into games even without tickets.
“This guy used to say, ‘Okay, come on in.’ It was the second inning or something,” Will said.
Then came 1982.
The Brewers made their first World Series appearance, facing the St. Louis Cardinals. This time, Will didn't need anyone to sneak him inside: his construction company gave him a ticket.
“It was the fifth game of the World Series,” Will said.
He was there to watch Milwaukee beat St. Louis in Game 5, putting the Brewers one victory away from a championship. Milwaukee ultimately lost the series in seven games.
More than four decades later, Will is hoping to see the Brewers reach baseball’s biggest stage again.
But this time, he prefers a different seat.
At 91, Will said he was offered World Series tickets again, but turned them down. He would rather watch from his recliner at his senior living facility in Dousman.
“That is where I sit,” he said, pointing to his chair.
For someone whose connection to Milwaukee baseball stretches back more than nine decades, the possibility of seeing the Brewers make history carries special meaning.
“It is a great feeling,” Will said.
Now, after a lifetime of watching, cheering, and waiting, Will hopes Milwaukee can finally finish the job.
“It would be nice for the city of Milwaukee. For all the fans and everybody,” Will said. “They deserve it — their loyalty to the game.”
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