Hey, beer man!

Daily News (West Bend, Wis.)
Published: April 5, 2016 (A1)

Hey, beer man!

A lifetime around the diamond

By NICHOLAS DETTMANN

Daily News

MILWAUKEE — One after another, donning bright neon green T-shirts, folks walk up to Dan McKinney’s table on wheels near the north loading dock at Miller Park ready to check in for their assignment.

On Opening Day, it’s like a family reunion. It’s time to catch up with old friends. What’d you do in the offseason? How’d your surgery go?

McKinney, 78, of Germantown, he remembers so many by name — past and present. This is his 62nd season of working with professional baseball in Milwaukee. He started as a 16-year-old in 1954 as a food vendor at Milwaukee County Stadium, a year after the Braves moved from Boston to Milwaukee. In 1954, peanuts and soda was 15 cents, and hot dogs were 20 cents. On Monday at Miller Park, peanuts were $4.25 and bottled soda was $4.75.

“I enjoyed it,” McKinney said.

McKinney started going to baseball games in the 1940s when the Milwaukee Brewers of the American Association baseball league played at Borchert Field on Milwaukee’s upper East side, 3000 N. Eighth St., which is now Interstate 43. McKinney remembered San Francisco Giants Hall of Famer Willie Mays having eight or nine hits in a doubleheader at the field in 1951.

“I was a fan, for one,” McKinney said.

Then he needed a part-time job. “I had some of friends of mine who worked at the game,” McKinney said. “It worked out well,” he said.

In addition to his dedication to baseball fans in Milwaukee, he was a biology teacher for more than 30 years.

McKinney attended Milwaukee Juneau High School. He ran track during the spring season but in the summer, he played baseball. After practice — usually in the mornings for baseball — he’d head over to County Stadium,

which wasn’t a far walk.

What else stood out to him was in the 1950s, access to and from the stadium was limited, so it was commonplace for the lines of cars to be long. On top of that, almost every game was a sellout.

“Cars, a lot of the time, were overheating,” McKinney said. “You’d see cars off to the side with steam coming out of their radiator because they overheated. It was mind-boggling that almost every game was a sellout.”

Then there were the people fans paid to watch.

“I don’t know how many Hall of Famers I got to see,” McKinney said.

Listening to him reel off name after name was like a who’s who of baseball lore.

“Jackie Robinson, Roy Campanella, Willie Mays, Stan Musial,” he said.

And those Hall of Famers weren’t just baseball players. Football Hall of Famers came through the gates at County Stadium when the Green Bay Packers played games in Milwaukee.

McKinney worked the World Series in both 1957 and 1958 — the Braves won it in ’57. After the Braves moved to Atlanta after the 1965 season, the Seattle Pilots moved to Milwaukee in 1970 and became the Brewers.

In that five-year span without full-time professional baseball, the Chicago White Sox played several games at County Stadium. When they did, McKinney was there hauling beer up and down the stairs of the stadium.

When the Packers were at County Stadium, McKinney was there.

If there was a concert or some other special event at County Stadium, McKinney was there.

In 1955, the Braves hosted the All-Star Game and Milwaukee’s Gene Conley was the winning pitcher. Conley is best known for being one of only two people to win championships in two of the four major American sports, one with the Braves in 1957 and three Boston Celtics NBA championships from 1959-61.

Essentially, if the gates of County Stadium were open, McKinney was there with his beer carrier.

In 1957 at the World Series, he sold programs for $1. They were 25 cents during regular season. They were kept in pillow cases.

McKinney started selling beer in 1958. It was 30 cents. On Monday, it was $7.50 for a Miller Lite.

He did that until 2008.

“A lot of memorable moments through the years,” McKinney said, adding it was good exercise. “I enjoyed doing it,” he said. “I enjoyed interacting with the fans. You could sneak a peak at the games. You could see what was going on.”

In the process, it eventually became a family thing.

Three of McKinney’s four daughters, plus two sons-in-law, a sister-in-law and his late wife of 58 years, Elaine, all worked at the stadium, whether it was County Stadium or Miller Park. They also frequented the concession stands at Wisconsin State Fair Park for more than 40 years.

“For me, it was a great summer job,” said Luann, one of Dan’s four daughters. “I met a lot of great friends when I was working there.”

Luann worked in the VIP area during the 1982 World Series between the Brewers and the St. Louis Cardinals, and also worked in concessions through high school and college.

“It’s something we were always kind of around,” she said. “It’s fun to interact with people.”

Dan hardly missed a game in more than 40 years serving professional baseball fans in Milwaukee. But he had three knee-replacement surgeries, including a dual-knee procedure in 1998, missing out on Mark McGwire of the St. Louis Cardinals and Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs’ historic home run battle when both players made late-season appearances in Milwaukee. Still, he’s seen his fair share of baseball.

“He’s a people person,” Luann said. “He loves talking to people, loved hearing their stories, connecting with people in some way.”

Out of the stands since 2008, McKinney now works underneath the stadium on the service level, often several hours before the first pitch. On Monday, he arrived at Miller Park five hours before the first pitch. He sets up near the door of the north dock, which is underneath the Hot Corner entrance, the northeast side of the stadium. He directs nonprofit groups working concession stands for fundraising, and then the beer vendors, assigning them locations to sell beverages.

He has a special place in Brewers history. When he reached his 55th season, the team gave him a jersey with “55” on it. They did the same for his 60th season. He’s also thrown out the first pitch twice and helped flip the countdown meter at County Stadium that showed how many games were left before it closed prior to the opening of Miller Park.

“I still enjoy interacting with people,” Dan said. “One of the things we pride ourselves on is making it an enjoyable experience for the fans and a safe experience to enjoy the game.”