Craig Counsell remembers Brewers longtime announcer Bob Uecker
After his stunning move to leave the Brewers to take over as Cubs manager following the 2023 season, it wasn’t long before Craig Counsell spoke to Bob Uecker.
“I would say we talked within the first half an hour of the move,” said Counsell, who was hired as Cubs manager in November 2023.
That moment provides a snapshot of the close relationship Counsell shared with Uecker — the beloved Brewers’ radio broadcaster who died on Thursday at the age of 90 following a multi-year battle with cancer.
Uecker left an indelible impact on fans and team personnel alike during his 70-year career in baseball, which included 54 years as the Brewers’ radio voice. Counsell reflected on Uecker’s wide reaching impact on Friday.
“Baseball lost a great man yesterday, Bob Uecker,” Counsell said at Cubs Convention. “He was a treasured friend for me, somebody who taught me a lot about just living, frankly — like, how to live. I’m — as we all are — saddened to lose a great baseball man.”
Uecker played six seasons in the major leagues from 1962-67, including two seasons with his hometown Milwaukee Braves, along with stints with the Phillies and Cardinals. He joined the Brewers’ radio booth in 1971 and went on to receive the Ford C. Frick Award in 2003.
Counsell, who played six of his 16 seasons in the major leagues with the Brewers, took over as manager in 2015.
“I had the opportunity to do a daily show with him that was probably supposed to be three-and-a-half to four minutes long, and every day that stretched into 25 to 30 minutes,” Counsell said. “I always walked out of it with something that I would be laughing about on the way home — win or lose during the game.
“I wish I would have had the recorder that you guys all have right now, a little bit more in those moments now, that’s for sure.”
[MORE: Cubs announce Sammy Sosa, Derrek Lee as 2025 Hall of Fame class]Along with serving as the soundtrack of summer for baseball fans in Milwaukee, Uecker made regular appearances on “The Tonight Show” in the 1970s and 80s with Johnny Carson, who dubbed Uecker, “Mr. Baseball.” Uecker also starred in the ABC sitcom, “Mr. Belvedere,” and later in the film “Major League.”
His impact spanned beyond the diamond.
“It was always great for me to see how excited players were to meet him,” Counsell said. “Home players, visiting players, players’ parents. Like, ‘Can you introduce me to Bob Uecker?’ Like, ‘Can you come meet my parents?’ was a common line from players.
“And that kind of tells you everything, right? The players loved to see him every day. He had a great way about him that made him feel like one of the guys.”