In 2001 the Milwaukee Bucks fell one game short of reaching the NBA Finals. Since then, they’ve had one winning record and three single-round playoff appearances in seven seasons. The last two seasons they finished 28-54 and 26-56. In April, John Hammond replaced Larry Harris as general manager...

The Milwaukee Brewers took their fans on a wild ride this season, from the heights of confidence to the depths of despair. But it was worth it as the Brewers reached the postseason for the first time in 26 years. A core of young stars—Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder, J.J. Hardy, Corey Hart—made the Brewers contenders from opening day. The July 7 trade for pitcher CC Sabathia, who carried the team, seemed to ensure a playoff spot.

The Observers took a week off from baseball to prepare for a "look back, look forward" analysis of the Brewers that will run next week. But there was plenty of football to talk about. Frank: Boy, the state owes Aaron Rodgers one. After three straight Packer losses, his big second half in Seattle had everyone breathing more easily.

The Green Bay Packers are in Seattle today to take on the Seattle Seahawks with a 3:15 p.m. game.

The Green Bay Packers take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at noon today at Lambeau. The game will be broadcast locally on Fox 6.

The promoters of the eccentric 7 p.m. Mondo Lucha Wrestling/Variety Show tonight at the Turner Hall Ballroom are wisely betting that Milwaukeeans won’t be able to resist its wry and lurid combination of irony, kitsch and breasts. At the top of tonight’s freak show is a Lucha Libre Mexican wrestling smackdown, complete with the requisite masks (and hopefully some semblance of cultural sensitivity), but there’s...

The Brewers, in a must-win situation every day, did local fans a double favor Sunday. They finally won in Cincinnati, and did it so easily that folks could switch channels and enjoy watching the Chicago Bears lose in overtime. Artie: So, Frank, it’s our first official get-together since the Brewers’ managerial regime...

So this is what a baseball playoff atmosphere feels like in Milwaukee. I was around for the last one, but at that time I was much thinner, had more hair, less intelligence. Miller Park was an exciting place to be last night. The fans armed with their Brewers towels, waved them vigorously from the early innings. When CC Sabathia was in a jam, they waved the towels again and he magically got out of the inning. When a clutch hit was required, the towels again...

Former Brewers skinflint Bud Selig made yet another faux pas when he sent the Astros to play the Division Champion Cubs in a "neutral" facility, our own Miller Park. Selig was trying to rectify the situation caused by Hurricane Ike, which prevented games from being played at Minute Maid Park in Houston. After his questionable decision to call a tie in the Milwaukee All-Star Game, Selig made more than a few enemies among MLB fans. Since the Cubs won both of those games at Miller Park, there have been...

The Observers prepared for their weekly get-together with intense workouts of their channel-changing fingers. Three hours of bouncing between the Packers’ game in Detroit and the Brewers’ continuing meltdown in Philadelphia made their mission clear: Look on the bright side by avoiding all mention of baseball.