The inaugural 1970 Milwaukee Brewers opened the season at home with a pair of losses to the Angels and a road loss to the White Sox. 43 years ago today, though, they finally picked up win #1.
Just 2,696 fans paid to see a Saturday game, but the handful of fans that were there saw the White Sox blow a 4-0 lead as the Brewers scored two in the sixth, two in the eighth and four in the ninth en route to a 8-4 win. Left fielder Danny Walton drove in four of those runs with a pair of homers, and three Brewer pitchers combined to work five scoreless innings.
This was the first of three straight wins for the Crew, but they followed that brief hot streak by losing seven consecutive games and 17 of 19. They finished the season 65-97.
With help from the B-Ref Play Index, happy birthday today to 1994-96 Brewer Turner Ward. He turns 48.
Today is also the 44th anniversary of the Seattle Pilots' home opener, which we covered in this space last year, and the 38th anniversary of Hank Aaron's Brewer debut in 1975, which we covered in this space two years ago.