Bosse Field – “Just a Bit Outside!”
Bob Eucker joined the Evansville Braves as a catcher in 1957. Uecker went on to play six major-league seasons, but he really made his impact as an announcer. He became the radio voice of the Milwaukee Brewers in 1971 and still holds that position today. He played the legendary, fictitious announcer Harry Doyle from the movie Major League, and belongs to several broadcaster’s Hall of Fames, the Baseball Hall of Fame as a broadcaster, and he’s even a member of the WWE Hall of Fame.
Bosse Field – Twins to Triplets
From 1966-1968 Evansville became the Double-A affiliate for the Chicago White Sox. In 1970 they became the Triple-A affiliate for the Minnesota Twins, they were aptly named the Evansville Triplets.
Name Alert: Even though Evansville and the Twins ended their affiliation after one season, the name “Triplets” stuck until 1984, despite the fact that it now made no sense. The sentiment seemed to be “who cares?”
In 1970, their first year with the Twins, a 19-year-old Bert Blyleven made his final stop in the minor leagues before embarking on a 22-year major-league career. Blyleven was a man ahead of his time, treating Evansville fans to modern-day strikeout numbers.
While in Evansville, Blyleven struck out 63 batters in 54 innings with two complete games in just seven starts for the Triplets.
“I refuse to Believe Jim Leyland was once 34-years-old.”
The team’s affiliation bounced from the Twins to the Brewers and finally settled on the Tigers in 1974. They were now a part of the American Association and by 1979, future legendary big-league manager, and 1979’s AA Manager of the Year Jim Leyland took over as manager at age 34. He led the Triplets to a league championship in his first season at the helm.
Historical Point of Reference: We have confirmed that Jim Leyland was indeed 34-years-old at one point.