At this point, it seems like we aren’t going to really get much of a 2020 season. That means that Milwaukee Brewers very own Ryan Braun’s last contracted year could be a short one. Could this make him want to play another year due to the pandemic? Or will he finally hang up the cleats? Should the Milwaukee Brewers honor Ryan Braun by retiring his number?
Why Braun?
Ryan Braun has been a face of the Brewers franchise since he basically stepped foot into the organization back in 2005. He skyrocketed through the minor leagues, and earned himself Rookie of the Year in 2007 when he posted a .324/.370/.634 slashline. He was well on his way to becoming a superstar.
In his nearly fourteen years as a Brewer, he joins the list of just a few to have spent their entire career in Milwaukee. Some other famous names among the list are Robin Yount and Jim Gantner, both of whom spent their entire professional baseball career in Milwaukee. Yount’s number hangs proudly in Miller Park, is it time that the Brewers honor Ryan Braun with his number?
Braun is a six-time All Star, 2011 MVP, Rookie of the Year, four-time Brewers MVP, and the 12th person in franchise history play over 1,000 games with the Milwaukee Brewers, just to name a few of his triumphant accomplishments. Even as he gets older with age, Braun still somehow is killing the game. He’s a well-known name, anyone will know who you’re talking about if you were to mention Ryan Braun. He finished the 2019 season hitting two milestones: Reaching 1,000 career runs and leading the Brewers in all-time home runs at 344.
Argument
Many could argue that his number shouldn’t be retired due to the whole PED scandal back in 2011 and 2013. Braun would miss the second half of the 2013 season due to a suspension caused by another PED scandal. People who aren’t the fondest of the Milwaukee Brewers, or Ryan Braun specifically, like to use that as a way to make it seem like they’re trying to offend Brewers fans? It’s a confusing concept, honestly, but, Brewers fans know what Braun did. They know what really happened, and they know that Braun himself and the Brewers have moved on from the entire situation.
Braun has said that he does not see himself being inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. With the contributions he’s put towards the Milwaukee Brewers over the span of his career, it would only be right to retire his number. I don’t think any Brewers fan could picture another player wearing that number besides Braun.
Conclusion
There is going to be an ongoing debate about this topic until a decision is reached. But for the Brewers fans who have been supporting Braun, I think we can all agree that he deserves this. I’m sure they’ll probably do it when Christian Yelich hangs up his glove at the end of his career.
Seeing Ryan Braun’s name and number next to Yount, Fingers, Uecker, Selig, Aaron, Robinson, and Molitor would be groundbreaking and historical. Braun is, and will be considered, a legend among the Milwaukee Brewers.
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