Former Brewer and Hall of Famer Paul Molitor (right) made an appearance at the 6th Annual Mallards/MLB Alumni Game Sunday. Molitor signed autographs throughout the event. Jenkins could not appear but fans in attendance who came to see Jenkins will receive autographs at a later date. Please see details below for more information.
By Matt Schneider, PR Intern
MADISON, WI – August 14, 2011. While the Mallards were playing in Battle Creek on Sunday, the organization hosted its sixth annual MLB/Alumni Game at the “Duck Pond” Sunday evening. The day was filled with exciting player appearances, including the headline appearance made by former Brewer and Baseball Hall of Famer Paul Molitor.
Gates for the game opened at 3:00 p.m., and the hundreds of people who waited for hours outside the ballpark came pouring in for a chance to get a glimpse of and meet some of their favorite players.
Molitor and a handful of other former big leaguers signed autographs for several hours before the game started. The lines were so long at certain points that the start time of the exhibition contest was pushed back by nearly an hour so all fans in attendance could meet the players.
The game featured the Steve Schmitt All-Stars versus Maynard’s All-Stars and was a seven-inning affair that was filled with good pitching, timely hitting, and a lot of playful banter.
In the end, Maynard’s All-Stars took the crown by defeating Schmitt and his crew 7-1 in front of one of the largest crowds to view an MLB/Alumni Game at the home of the Mallards. Maynard’s All-Stars were able to ride the momentum of a four-run top of the first inning to secure the victory.
The most memorable moments of the night were turned in by former MLB pitcher Bill “Spaceman” Lee who still looked like he could take on the likes of today’s MLB All-Stars. Lee threw some fastballs and mixed in a lot of his infamous off-speed pitches to retire batters. Mallards employee Bruce Peckens also got the crowd on their feet as he reached base in his only at-bat and scored a run after stealing a base and tagging on a sacrifice fly.
Rosters for the game were as follows:
Steve Schmitt’s All-Stars: Steve Schmitt, Jerry Reuss, Vern Geishert, Chris Maliszewski, Randy Molina, Nate Trumm, Craig Meier, and James Kalinowski to name a few.
Maynard’s All-Stars consisted of Lee, Peckens, Jay Johnstone, Jason Jacome, Brad Woodall, Jake Eiler, Matt Musser, Tyler Schill, Jon Olson, Dick Anderson, and Ross Voelker.
Molitor signed autographs well into the first few innings of the game and came onto the field to give the crowd a wave. Molitor did not make an appearance in the game.
Also not participating in the game was former Brewer Jim Gantner. Gantner did make an appearance to sign autographs and like Molitor, stayed well into the game to greet his admirers.
Hall of Famer Ferguson “Fergie” Jenkins was scheduled to appear, but could not make it to the event due to an unforseen conflict. All fans in attendance to see Ferguson and receive his autograph will have their memorabilia signed by Ferguson and Mallards personnel will contact those individuals once their items have been signed. For questions regarding your item for Jenkins, please contact the Mallards front office at (608) 246-4277.
