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MILWAUKEE — As the Milwaukee Brewers conducted a moment of silence before their home opener to honor Bob Uecker, one fan decided keeping quiet wasn’t the best way to pay tribute to the lovable loquacious broadcaster.

“We love you, Ueck,” the spectator shouted.

Fans, players and executives simply couldn’t hold back their appreciation for Uecker, who died Jan. 16 at the age of 90 after broadcasting Brewers games for the last 54 seasons and arguably becoming the most recognizable figure in franchise history.

The tributes to him were everywhere as the Brewers lost 11-1 to the Kansas City Royals on Monday in their first home game since Uecker’s death. It was apparent from Brewers principal owner Mark Attanasio’s decision to wear one of the plaid blazers that Uecker often favored.

“I did my best to find a jacket in my closet that would be something he would wear,” Attanasio said.

The American Family Field grounds crew had Uecker’s signature decorated on the outfield grass. The Brewers wore patches honoring Uecker on their jersey sleeves, something that they’ll do all season. The first pitches were thrown by representatives of the Wounded Warrior Project and the ALS Association, two of Uecker’s favorite causes. The pro shop sold a line of Uecker-themed clothes, with portions of the proceeds benefiting charities Uecker had supported.

Outside the press box entrance was a banner with the message “We’ll Miss You, Bob,” that included thank-you notes from fans who had signed it after Uecker’s death.

Way over in the upper right-field corner of American Family Field in a section where tickets aren’t sold, the Brewers placed a giant blue tarp bearing the message “I must be in the front row,” a nod to a famous Uecker line from one of his Miller Lite commercials.

“Obviously we all miss him and wish he was here,” said outfielder Christian Yelich, who had worn a plaid blazer to honor Uecker before Thursday’s season opener at Yankee Stadium. “I think he’ll be with us for this season and many seasons going forward.”

Brewers fans came up with plenty of different ways to pay tribute to Uecker, who continued to broadcast home games last year even as he battled small cell lung cancer.

Many spectators spent the minutes before the game lining up to get their photos taken flanking a Uecker statue in Section 422. Another statue outside the stadium honoring Uecker was decorated with a sign featuring his trademark home-run call: “Get up! Get up! Get out of here! Gone!” Other fans lined up Miller Lite beer cans at the base of the statue.

“He was the voice of our childhood summers,” said David Horton of Fitchburg, Wisconsin, who placed one of the beer cans at the base of the statue. “We had him on in the garage with our dads in the backyards. He was just a staple. We just wanted to pay our respects in a small way and show some love.”

This wasn’t the first time fans had placed Miller Lite cans at the base of that statue to pay tribute to Uecker. Many of them also had done so after Uecker’s death, even though the freezing temperatures assured the full beer cans wouldn’t stay that way for long.

“They said the beer cans started popping, and they thought it was Uecker doing it because he was thirsty, getting ready for opening day,” quipped Paul Stainbrook of Racine, Wisconsin.

The tributes continued around town.

Kopp’s, a local burger restaurant known for its frozen custard, offered a special “Mr. Baseball” flavor for Monday’s home opener. It included beer nuts, chocolate-covered peanuts and a splash of Miller Lite. Kopp’s donated 20% of the custard sales to the Make-a-Wish Foundation, in honor of Uecker’s career batting average of .200.

Milwaukee loved Uecker because of what he meant to the city. He stayed true to his hometown and continued working Brewers games even as his star rose from his Miller Lite commercials, his chats with Johnny Carson and his featured roles in the movie “Major League” and TV’s “Mr. Belvedere.”

“There’s nobody who was more loyal or genuine,” Attanasio said.

He also was beloved by players and made regular pregame appearances in the Brewers’ locker room. Milwaukee’s players loved him so much that manager Pat Murphy took time out from the Brewers’ division-clinching celebration last season to recognize Uecker so that the team could give him an ovation.

When that season ended with a heartbreaking loss in the NL Wild Card Series, Uecker walked into a silent locker room and comforted players such as Devin Williams, who had given up a two-run, ninth-inning lead. Yelich said the toughest part of the night was speaking to Uecker afterward and knowing how badly the longtime broadcaster wanted to see the Brewers win that elusive World Series title.

He would have been the ideal voice to help settle a team that has been outscored 47-15 after opening the season with three straight losses to the New York Yankees followed by Monday’s rout.

“Ueck just had a way to put things in perspective,” Murphy said. “He had been through so much. He knew he had. So he could calm you down. He could put you in the right frame of mind. He could joke about it. He had a beautiful way about him.”

But as Yelich noted, Uecker’s spirit will remain here long after his voice isn’t heard on Brewers broadcasts anymore. That thought provided comfort to fans such as Heather Floyd-Gabrysiak of West Allis, Wisconsin, who made sure to arrive for Monday’s game wearing a Brewers jersey with Uecker’s name on the back.

“He’s always going to be here,” Floyd-Gabrysiak said. “Even if he’s not here, you’ll still feel him here. He’ll still be a part of it always.”

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Canes win series, spoil Markstrom 49-save outing

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Canes win series, spoil Markstrom 49-save outing

After the New Jersey Devils saw their season end in double overtime Tuesday night, goaltender Jacob Markstrom wanted to express his frustration via his stick. He thought about boomeranging it to the boards. Instead, he swung it hard against his goalpost, breaking it in half.

Sebastian Aho‘s goal at 4:17 of the second overtime in Game 5 gave the Carolina Hurricanes a 5-4 win and a 4-1 series victory over the Devils. It was the first puck Markstrom had fly by him in 37 consecutive shots on goal, dating to the second period. That included 18 saves he made in overtime, as Carolina marauded a short-handed and exhausted Devils defense but couldn’t solve the 35-year-old goalie.

“That was one of the better goaltending performances that I’ve witnessed,” Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said of Markstrom, who finished with 49 saves. “He let in a few early that he’d like to have back. But once he got dialed in, you’re thinking it’ll have to bank off somebody, because we’re not beating him.”

Markstrom’s frustration wasn’t just with the overtime goal. The Devils built a 3-0 lead in the first period. Carolina scored three times in the first 5:40 of the second period to erase it. New Jersey responded with a Nico Hischier goal, only to have Aho knot the score at 4 moments later.

“We put up four goals on the road,” Markstrom said. “We should have brought it home. It should have been enough.”

But as his teammates noted, Markstrom’s effort in the overtimes should have been enough to win Game 5.

“We were under siege. He was outstanding. We were reeling,” coach Sheldon Keefe said.

“He played unbelievable. Marky kept us in that first overtime,” Hischier said. “I feel bad for him because he battled his ass off.”

Markstrom was acquired by the Devils last offseason in a high-profile deal with the Calgary Flames that was intended to fix the team’s goaltending, which ranked 30th in 2023-24. He won 26 times in 49 games with a .900 save percentage and a 2.50 goals-against average. He was outstanding, for the most part, in the playoffs: .911 save percentage and a 2.78 goals-against average in five games.

But Markstrom couldn’t overcome two things in the postseason for the Devils. The first were their injuries. Already without star center Jack Hughes, who had season-ending shoulder surgery, the Devils saw defensemen Luke Hughes, Johnathan Kovacevic and Brenden Dillon leave the series with injuries, with defensemen Jonas Siegenthaler and Dougie Hamilton playing at less than 100%.

“We had a few guys go down in the series. A few guys step up and battle. We’ve got to get better. We don’t like the result,” forward Timo Meier said.

The other factor was the Devils special teams. Their power play was officially 0-for-15. Their penalty kill allowed six goals on 19 Carolina power plays.

“That’s why we lost the series for sure. We couldn’t get the power play going. That’s on those guys, including me, that are on the ice. That’s definitely frustrating,” Hischier said.

But the Devils gutted out the series, pushing Carolina to double overtime in an elimination game despite those deficiencies.

“There’s a lot of will in this room,” Markstrom said. “It sucks right now.”

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DeGrom gets 1st win in 2 years as Rangers rip A’s

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DeGrom gets 1st win in 2 years as Rangers rip A's

ARLINGTON, Texas — Everything came together in the same game for two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom and the Texas Rangers batters.

Texas had a much-needed offensive breakout while deGrom struck out seven over six scoreless innings for his first win in more than two years, though he had pitched well enough to win in several other starts this season.

“When was the last one, ’23? Yeah, it’s been a while,” deGrom said after the Rangers’ 15-2 win over the Athletics on Tuesday night.

“He earned it. He had great stuff tonight, he kept us on our toes,” second baseman Marcus Semien said. “We were just talking about how the time of possession was. You know, we were hitting for a long time and he’s getting quick outs. So usually that’s a good recipe.”

The 36-year-old deGrom (1-1) had gone 737 days since also beating the A’s on April 23, 2023, then made only one more start in his debut season with Texas before Tommy John surgery.

He scattered four singles and didn’t walk a batter in a 65-pitch outing (47 strikes). It was only that short since the right-hander didn’t return after an eight-run outburst in the Rangers sixth that matched their previous season high for runs in an entire game and put them up 12-0.

So just how efficient was deGrom? The right-hander honestly thought he was “probably in the 70s or something to 80,” as did catcher Jonah Heim.

“A lot a strikeouts that I feel like he just overpowered a lot of hitters, which is who he is. He’s got that electric fastball,” Heim said.

“My mechanics were pretty good,” said deGrom, a meticulous worker who was feeling good after a side session the day before the game. “I’m constantly trying to perfect it and get in the best positions that I can get based on performance and health.”

Texas entered the night last in the majors with 91 runs scored, and only 12 combined the previous six games. DeGrom had gotten only nine runs of support in his first five starts.

The Rangers snapped a three-game losing streak while setting season highs for runs, hits (18) and walks (nine). They had three bases-clearing doubles in the same game for the first time in team history – Adolis García and Wyatt Langford each had one during a four-batter stretch in that big sixth, and Kyle Higashioka added his three-run double in the eighth.

Their offensive outburst came after the full squad was required to be on the field for batting practice before the game.

“Good to see you guys break out and have a good game. … Some success, it’s contagious,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “You’re hoping this is something these guys can build on, build some confidence.”

For deGrom, he improved to 3-1 with a 2.55 ERA in his 15 starts for the Rangers since signing a $185 million, five-year contract in December 2022. He is 85-58 in 224 career starts, the first 209 with the New York Mets from 2014-2022.

“He was really good tonight. You know, I said when season started, it’s just going to get better with him as he builds up his strength and stamina,” Bochy said. “Really good command tonight, really good stuff. And it’s just getting better with him.”

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Yanks make history by again opening with 3 HRs

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Yanks make history by again opening with 3 HRs

BALTIMORE — The New York Yankees became the first team in major league history to open a game with three consecutive home runs more than once in a season when Trent Grisham, Aaron Judge and Ben Rice went deep off Baltimore‘s Kyle Gibson in the first inning Tuesday night.

New York started the bottom of the first of its March 29 game against Milwaukee with three homers in a row. In that game, Paul Goldschmidt, Cody Bellinger and Judge needed only three pitches to hit three homers.

The Yankees added a fourth home run later in the first inning of both that game and Tuesday’s game, making them the first team to belt four in the first inning twice in a season.

On Tuesday night, the Yankees hit three of the game’s first five offerings out to right field.

“Grish got it going for us and set the tone for us early on,” Judge said after the 15-3 win. “When he goes up there and … sends one to Eutaw Street, it’s pretty impressive and gets you going.”

It was an ugly return to the majors for the 37-year-old Gibson, who made 30 starts for the St. Louis Cardinals last season before Baltimore signed him to a $5.25 million, one-year contract in late March. He’d been working in the minors since then before being called up before Tuesday’s game. He was finally pulled with two outs in the fourth after allowing nine runs and 11 hits.

“He gave up four homers in the first inning. That’s kind of a telling sign,” Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said. “At that point I’m just trying to figure out how we’re going to get through the game.”

After Rice’s home run made it 3-0, Gibson retired Goldschmidt on a grounder before Bellinger also homered. Anthony Volpe‘s RBI double made it 5-0 before the first inning was over.

Rice homered again in the second to make it 6-0. Austin Wells hit New York’s final home run — all six came with nobody on — with two outs in the ninth.

“It just shows that we’ve got a lot of depth in the lineup,” Rice said.

Not all the news was great for the Yankees, however. Jazz Chisholm Jr. left the game with right flank discomfort in the first inning.

Chisholm, who is hitting .181 with seven home runs this season, appeared to have hurt himself while he was batting. After being checked on, he stayed at the plate and hit a double, advancing to third on an error by right fielder Ramon Laureano.

Chisholm said he wasn’t worried about needing to go on the injured list.

“I’m really not as concerned as everybody else,” Chisholm said. “I tore my oblique before. I know it’s not torn or anything.”

The Associated Press and ESPN Research contributed to this report.

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