Milwaukee, WI
New stadium features, broadcast deal on tap for Milwaukee Brewers 2025 season
Under a new stadium lease agreement that includes $500 million in public funding, the Milwaukee Brewers will kick off the 2025 season next week with some new and ongoing infrastructure improvements at American Family Field.
Projects that have been completed since the Wisconsin Professional Baseball Park District approved the new 25-year lease agreement with the Brewers in December 2024 include the installation of new broadcast cabling, the full renovation of the club-level kitchen area and bathrooms, and replacement of all freezer and refrigeration equipment throughout the ballpark. Those projects targeted spaces and equipment that were original to the ballpark, which was built in 2001.
“It’s something the fans may not notice directly, but as infrastructure gets old and deteriorates and becomes antiquated, it needs to be replaced, and these were three projects that were definitely in need of replacement,” said Brewers president of business operations Rick Schlesinger during a press conference Monday as part of the team’s preview week leading up to the season home opener, set for Monday, March 31, against the Kansas City Royals.
Work to winterize the stadium — the costliest and most involved project planned under the new lease — won’t begin until after the 2025 baseball season and will likely take “more than one off season to complete,” said Schlesinger. The purpose of the winterization project is to be able to host large-scale events at American Family Field all year round.
One infrastructure project that will be ongoing throughout the season is the buildout of the baseball operations offices on the terrace level overlooking right field. About 1,600 seats were removed to make way for the project, reducing total seating capacity to 40,100, which Schlesinger said is “still comfortably above the average” for MLB stadiums. He said the Brewers are considering ways to add some of that capacity back to other parts of the stadium over the next few years.
“The ballpark is evolving, it’s ever-changing,” said Schlesinger. “One of the things great about this facility is that it allows and enables us to do different things. So while we’re taking some seats away up in right field on the terrace level, we can add seats elsewhere, we can add more spaces elsewhere, more premium spaces, more fan-friendly areas.”
Other new features fans can expect to see at American Family Field this season is a new food truck park, called The Alley, located on the left field Loge level of the stadium, and a new facial-authentication ticketing system fans 18 and older can use to enter the stadium.
MLB Go-Ahead technology uses a camera that will authenticate fans faces, automatically scanning tickets once identified. The voluntary system will be available at the home plate west and third base gates. The Brewers are one of 10 MLB teams so far to implement the technology, and it’s one way the franchise is working to make the arrival and entry easier and more efficient for fans, said Schlesinger, pointing also to the automated parking payment system the franchise rolled out last season.
“One of the things we’re trying to do with parking and ingress is to make it a much more seamless experience, faster,” he said. “People want to get here, they don’t want to wait in lines, they want come to the ballpark, and we have a lot of cool things we’re showcasing this year for fans to explore in the ballpark. If you can get here faster, that’s a good thing.”
New broadcast deal
Fans who are not watching the Brew Crew from the stadium’s seats this season can catch games live on the FanDuel Sports Network (formerly Bally Sports), thanks to a broadcast partnership the Brewers struck late last year with network owner Diamond Sports Group.
As was the case under the Bally Sports brand, Brewers games will be available on all major cable networks and satellite. They will also be available to stream on either the FanDuel Sports Network app or Amazon Prime throughout the state, in addition to other markets where Brewers games were not previously available including parts of Iowa, Minnesota, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Northern Illinois, according to Schlesinger.
“We’re excited about the high quality they’re gonna bring, and again, for the fan who was used to watching 145 live Brewer games on Bally’s, they’ll have the same experience in 2025,” said Schlesinger.
Remembering Uecker
Schlesinger acknowledged early in his remarks the void that legendary Brewers radio announcer Bob Uecker left in his passing earlier this year. Uecker, who was the primary broadcaster for the Brewers for 54 seasons, died on Jan. 16 at the age of 90 after battling small cell lung cancer since early 2023.
“We’re still sort of dealing with the fact that the legend, the icon, the epitome of Brewers baseball is no longer with us,” said Schlesinger.
The team will honor Uecker in various ways on opening day and throughout the season and plans are still in the works for a public celebration of life event at the ballpark this summer. Details on the event are expected to be announced early next month.
The Brewers on Monday released a new limited line of apparel and merchandise honoring “Mr. Baseball.” The items are now on sale at the Brewers Team Store, with net proceeds benefitting charitable causes supported by Uecker and his family.
Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam talks greater involvement, Giannis future
Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam says that he will have a greater involvement with the team and that includes the decision on if to re-sign Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Milwaukee Bucks know their placement in the 2026 NBA Draft, slotted No. 10 for their first lottery pick in a decade. Who are some of the possible selections at that spot when June 23 rolls around?
Check out what the first post-lottery wave of mock drafts has to say, most of them pointing to same prospect, that being Nate Ament of Tennessee, a 6-10 freshman small forward.
Nate Ament, forward, Tennessee
From Spencer Woo of ESPN: “While Ament’s stock has slipped from an early top-five projection, he had productive stretches this season within a tricky team context and has room to help himself in workouts. Although scouts are split on whether he has star potential or projects better as a long-term supporting player, there is still plenty of intrigue around Ament in the lottery. As a tall skill player with shotmaking upside, Ament fits a player archetype that teams often love to swing on. As Milwaukee considers a post-Antetokounmpo future, a malleable upside swing such as Ament could be a fit.”
Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo! Sports: “The Bucks should take a swing to jump-start their new era, whether or not Giannis Antetokounmpo is part of it. Players who can handle, shoot off the dribble, and stand at 6-foot-10 don’t grow on trees. This physical foundation kept Ament in lottery consideration even after a dreadful start to his freshman season when he struggled to score efficiently and make an impact defensively. But over the second half of the year for Tennessee, he flipped a switch and shots began to fall. He averaged 23.8 points over a six-game stretch in January and February that reminded everyone why he was a top recruit in the country. Then he dealt with an ankle injury that ruined his momentum entering March and he severely struggled during the tournament. Bucks general manager Jon Horst has never been afraid to take risks though. If Ament pans out, it could look like a stroke of genius.”
Gary Parrish of CBS Sports: “Ament had an up-and-down freshman season for the Vols – but the upside isn’t hard to spot. Less than a year ago, the 2025 McDonald’s All-American was considered a possible top-five pick. So getting Ament here would be nice for a Bucks franchise that seems on the verge of rebuilding after presumably trading Giannis Antetokounmpo this offseason.”
The Ringer: “Barring some transactional magic, this could be Milwaukee’s best bite at the talent apple in the draft for a while. The Bucks don’t currently have control over a first-round pick until 2031. If Giannis Antetokounmpo decides it’s time to move on, this roster will be rudderless and talent-deprived. If Giannis decides not to move on, it’ll have a rudder but still won’t go anywhere. Less than ideal, but that makes this a ‘best player available’ scenario, or rather ‘best wager available.’ There are definitely more stable options in this range, but Ament’s higher possible outcomes justify this pick. Ament fell short of expectations this past season, and he slid from top-five consideration as a result, but the jumbo-sized, smooth-moving ball handler is still a worthy bet here. Handling the ball at 6-foot-10 is an intriguing enough skill to instill some belief that he could develop into a quality asset. And the Bucks can take the risk given their circumstances.
Adam Finkelstein of CBS Sports: “Ament is a polarizing prospect with a wide range of outcomes on draft night. A late-blooming 6-foot-10 combo-forward who is fluid, has touch, and skill, he’s also inconsistent and needs to get stronger. While his freshman year was up and down, Ament’s overall arc has been linear, and there’s still glaring potential. That upside makes him a logical choice for a Milwaukee team that has a very uncertain future ahead of them.”
Brian Lewis of New York Post: “After the run on guards, taking an upside swing on a gifted developmental player here seems like a worthy gamble for a Bucks team that could be in full-on rebuild in a post-Giannis era.”
Two other names mentioned
From Eric Nehm of The Athletic: “This was an incredibly difficult pick to make without knowing what the Bucks are going to do with Giannis Antetokounmpo. If the 10-time All-Star forward remains in Milwaukee, it might make more sense to look at someone like Yaxel Lendeborg, who could make an impact right away and give the Bucks more size and skill. Instead, though, I went with Philon, who has a lot of offensive upside and could be protected on the defensive end by Ryan Rollins. Philon is an electrifying offensive player who shot 50 percent from the field and 39 percent from 3 while averaging 22 points, 3.5 rebounds and five assists per game last season.”
From Kurt Helin of NBC Sports: “The Bucks need all the backcourt help they can get, and Burries may not be flashy, but he does a lot of things well — he can play on and off the ball, can knock down catch-and-shoot jumpers but also attack closeouts, and he gets downhill off screens and has a midrange pull-up game.”
Brad Paisley (Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE – Brad Paisley is scheduled to perform at the BMO Pavilion in Milwaukee on Sept. 4.
Ticket information
What we know:
The ticket pre-sale for Brad’s fan club members, Paisley Nation, begins on Tuesday, May 12 at 10 am. All tickets available at BradPaisley.com.
The tour will also offer a variety of VIP packages and experiences for fans to take their concert experience to the next level.
FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android
Packages vary but include premium seats, a guided backstage tour, VIP-exclusive gift item, early entry & more. VIP package contents vary depending on the selected offer. For more information, visit VIPnation.com.
The Source: The information in this post was provided by Live Nation.
Billionaire Wes Edens, co-founder of Fortress Investment Group and co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks NBA club, is shown at Sun Valley, Idaho, on July 9, 2015. The Wall Street Journal on Sunday identified Edens as the victim of a billion-dollar extortion plot allegedly hatched by an ex-lover. File Photo by Andrew Gombert/EPA
May 10 (UPI) — Wes Edens, the billionaire co-founder of Fortress Investment Group and an owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, was the target of a billion-dollar extortion scheme allegedly perpetrated by an ex-lover, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.
A spokesman for Edens, 64, confirmed to the newspaper that the financier is the unnamed alleged victim in a federal indictment brought against Changli “Sophia” Luo of New York City.
Edens, one of world’s most successful global investment management firm leaders with Fortress, has developed and owned businesses in real estate, transportation, infrastructure, health care, financial services, media and entertainment.
He is also a high-profile sports team owner, including the Bucks and soccer club Aston Villa of the English Premier League. He is credited turning the Bucks from a perennial cellar dweller into a champion squad over a five-year span, culminating in the 2021 NBA championship.
But he also fell victim to a lurid alleged “sextortion” scheme, his spokesman confirmed to the WSJ, admitting the Edens is the unnamed “Victim 1” cited an indictment filed last year in Manhattan federal court against Luo.
The indictment reportedly accuses her of trying to extort Victim 1 of more than $1 billion by threatening to release videos and photos of them engaged in sex. Prosecutors alleged Luo also threatened to contact the victim’s family members and business partners in a threat to destroy his fortune if he did not pay up.
According to the indictment, Luo was arrested June 14 at JFK International Airport as she tried to board a flight to China, the New York Post reported.
“Mr. Edens will be making no comment on the case as the indictment speaks for itself with respect to the charges against the defendant,” his spokesman told the Journal. “Mr. Edens expects to testify under oath at the upcoming trial.”
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