This Week in Brewers History, January 9-15

On January 13, 2005, Bud Selig's ownership group finalized its $180 million sale of the Milwaukee Brewers to Mark Attanasio's ownership group, officially ending the Selig era in Milwaukee that began with Bud's purchase of the Seattle Pilots in 1970, the team's move to Milwaukee, and its renaming to become the Brewers.

Statue of Selig
at Miller Park

Despite previous successes, the team became characterized by poor performance throughout the late 1990s under the management of Bud's daughter, Wendy Selig-Prieb. The Brewers failed to produce a .500 record from 1993-2004, culminating in an unfortunate 56-106 record in 2002.

Thus far Attanasio's tenure has been characterized by a desire among Brewers management to field a competitive team annually, through the development of homegrown stars such as Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun, the expansion of the team's payroll, and the completion of blockbuster trades for high-end talent when necessary. One such trade in mid-2008 brought the 2007 Cy Young Award winner, ace pitcher CC Sabathia, from Cleveland to Milwaukee as the Brewers attempted to break a 26-year playoff drought. Sabathia performed admirably down the stretch, carrying the team as he posted an 11-2 record in 17 starts and pitched several games on short rest, including a wild card-clinching victory in the final game of the season.







Today's trivia question: In how many of CC Sabathia's 11 wins for the Brewers in 2008 did he pitch a complete game, and how many of these complete games were shutout victories?