Follow Friday: active Brewers Twitter accounts (and some we’d like to see)
Joe Robbins
This is the only time John Axford isn't Tweeting (or is it?)
Like it or not, Twitter is here to stay. Unlike sub-standard social sites like Friendster and MySpace, this continually updating and infinitely interactive 140-character medium has real staying power. After all, it’s a great form of free promotion, and it has become a vital communication tool for protesters in regions of political conflict. More importantly, it can be used to chronicle things like the dude from The Lawrence Arms and a porn star making plans to meet at an aquarium.
The resourcefulness of Twitter has also spilled over into Major League Baseball, granting fans access to their favorite players, including a couple of Milwaukee Brewers.
Likely not satisfied with his closing prowess and his gimmicky facial hair being the only vehicles to his popularity, John Axford took to Twitter and, in doing so, became evermore the fan favorite in Milwaukee and beyond. For those not among the pitcher’s respectable 12,500-plus followers, @JohnAxford posts daily updates with subject matter ranging from film critiques, information on upcoming talk show appearances, and post game comments—even after blown saves. Most tweets are accompanied by the hash tag “staching.”
Less popular, both as a Brewers bullpen option and a Brewers Twitter option, is LaTroy Hawkins. The veteran reliever’s tweets, which appear under the handle @Adidas219, run the gamut of topics, from the events of the NBA Playoffs to the plot lines of Criminal Minds. But more than anything else, Hawkins exhausts his characters (and, likely, his near-2,000 followers) with preachy quotes from the Bible. One lengthy string of tweets in particular pertained to the importance of overcoming temptation to lay with a woman that isn’t one’s wife; no word yet on whether Hawkins’ chosen handle relates to the Korn-based acronym for All Day I Dream About Sex.
However, appealing as the Brewers tweeters are to their differing camps of followers, the mere TWO players stroking the keys currently puts Milwaukee near the bottom of the MLB Twitter standings (though still above the Cubs).
Sure, the gifted fan tweeters behind flash in the pan sensation @MillerParkHawk—complete with its flocking hilarious bird puns and “caw” hashtag—and the eloquent third person musings of Nyjer Morgan alter ego @Tony_Plush somewhat make up for the shortage of player representatives on the web. But with the 2011 Milwaukee Brewers being one of, if not the most, exciting teams in franchise history, The A.V. Club can’t help but wish more players and team personnel would take to Twitter. Just think of the possibilities:
@DMelvin
Cunning Canadian GM Doug Melvin would be a great person to follow. Even the abbreviated insight of one of the league’s longest tenured general managers could be an invaluable resource to fans. Of course, his tweets would likely be laden with deception like, “We are not interested in Nyjer Morgan. #WeAreGettingNyjerMorgan”
@YunieB3
Milwaukee’s new shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt would undoubtedly make an interesting tweeter. For one, the Cuban defector left his native country on a speedboat less than 10 years ago. You can’t deny the appeal of updates about his unique origin, his adjustment to life in Milwaukee, and his response to his many critics in the baseball world. Of course, we’re talking about Betancourt, so you’d have to go into following him expecting a great deal of errors along the way.
@HartOfMKE
Back from the disabled list, there’s no better time for one of the team’s most popular players to take up tweeting. When not re-tweeting lyrics of terrible country songs and (we assume) using the wrong version of there, their, and they’re, Corey Hart’s feed could double as a source of fertility advice to couples struggling to conceive.
@FSWRock
Predating Miller Park, the Brewers’ absorption into the National League, and the days of any discernible playoff expectation, Alfred William “Bill” Schroeder (a.k.a. “Rock”) has seen more Milwaukee baseball than anyone on the Brewers payroll not named Bob Uecker. So imagine what Schroeder could bring to Twitter with his decades of Brewers exposure, both as a player and a broadcaster. We think it’d go something like this: “bloop and a blast. bloop and a blast. bloop and a blast. how ’bout a bloop and a bloop and a blast, eh, partner? #bloop #and #a #blast.”
These are only a few of the potential tweeters who could greatly improve the team’s lacking social media presence. Either more players need to start tweeting, or another animal better start stirring shit up at Miller Park forthwith—whichever comes first.
