An Open Letter from Brewers Owner Mark Attanasio

October 4, 2007

Dear Brewer Fans,

Thank you for your help in making the 2007 season a winning one in so many ways. When I left Miller Park after Sunday's final game and victory, I felt very encouraged by the direction and effort of our team. With young players in important frontline roles, we were able to go 16-12 during September in a very tight pennant race. Even having been eliminated from post-season play after the 160th game last Friday, our team played hard all weekend, staging two dramatic come-from-behind wins against a club still fighting for a playoff berth. I believe that this type of effort throughout the organization is what helped make the Brewers one of MLB's most compelling success stories this season--on the field, in the community, and on the business side.

Like you, I am disappointed that we did not make the playoffs after being in or tied for first place in our division for most of the season. However, we won 83 games, ending a 15-year period during which the outcome of our games at the end of the season did not much matter. I hope you take pride, as I do, in our improvement, which began before my ownership group purchased the club three years ago. As I traveled with the team, I heard people in baseball as well as the press say that they believe the Brewers are on the rise and are doing an excellent job of building a team that will be a consistent contender in the foreseeable future. While this is great to hear, we will not rest on these laurels. I assure you that a winning season is not our ultimate objective. It is only the first of a series of goals we have for our team.

You, the fans, set several records that are enabling us to move forward. With a franchise record 31 sellouts this season, our attendance increased by over 500,000 to almost 2.9 million as you cheered the Brewers on to the best home record in the National League (51-30). On FSN Wisconsin, the Brewers were the top-rated prime time show 40 times, and during a game against the Astros in mid-September, one in eight homes across the state was watching the team--a remarkable number in this era of 100-plus channels on cable, satellite television, and the Internet. You also helped send four members of the team to the All-Star Game in San Francisco--Prince Fielder, J.J. Hardy, Ben Sheets, and Francisco Cordero--for the first time since 1983.

One hundred and sixty-two games played in 182 days is a long season, and ours was filled with many outstanding performances. There was MVP candidate Prince Fielder setting a Major League record by becoming the youngest player to hit 50 home runs in a season, eclipsing baseball legend Willie Mays; Rookie of the Year candidate Ryan Braun rewriting the rookie record books for slugging percentage while hitting the fifth most homers by a rookie in NL history, despite being called up in late May; and the Brewers setting a Major League record by starting a game with three consecutive home runs as part of our 231 homers--the most in MLB this season.

On behalf of everyone in the Brewers organization, please accept our deep gratitude and appreciation. Also know that we are firmly committed to doing better in all aspects--performing on the field, entertaining and serving you at Miller Park, and serving you in the community. For us, there is no off-season. We now focus on taking steps to continue to improve the club so that in the future, baseball will be played in Milwaukee in October.

Our heartfelt thanks for your ongoing support and loyalty. We look forward to seeing you in a few short months.

Go Brewers!