Milwaukee Brewers All Time 25 Man Roster
By David Hill
Second Base – Jim Gantner (1976-1992)
The Milwaukee Brewers have five officially retired numbers. Then, there is number 17, belonging to Jim Gantner, which has not been retired. However, no one has worn it since he hung up his cleats.
In a way, Gantner may have been the perfect Brewer. Born and raised in Wisconsin, he attended The University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh, and spent his entire career in Milwaukee. A solid, steady player, he was never going to dazzle anyone, but he provided steady production at second. He was a blue collar player in a blue collar city.
Although he never won an award for his play, Gantner had a solid career. A career .274/.319/.351 hitter, Gantner had 1696 hits and 262 doubles. Even though he was rarely amongst the league leaders in any offensive category, he did enough with the bat to keep the opposition honest when he was at the plate.
Where Gantner truly shined was on defense. He saved the Brewers 42 runs at second over his career, and was frequently among the league leaders in range factor, assists, and double plays. He was willing to sacrifice himself defensively, having two serious knee injuries suffered while turning a double play. Yet, despite his excellence with the glove, Gantner never won a Gold Glove award.
A fan favorite, Jim Gantner was able to connect with the fans of the Brewers because he was one of them. A native son, he spent his entire career with the home town team, providing steady production both offensively and defensively.
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