Readers share with us their favorite Bob Uecker stories

The Milwaukee Brewers will be honoring late broadcasting legend Bob Uecker with a ceremony Aug. 24, and we asked readers to tell us their favorite memories of hearing Uecker on the radio.

During his 54 seasons calling Brewers baseball games, Uecker left us with some legendary calls and also some wild stories.

This is what readers told us:

The funny stories

Tom Possley, Baldwin: Years ago, I was driving and listening to the game on the radio. There was a rain delay vs. Detroit. I stopped driving eventually to listen to Bob and Norm Cash telling funny stories about their careers. I couldn't turn it off.

New Berlin: It was a preseason game. I was driving home from work, listening to the radio. Bob was saying how he would relax in his hotel room after a game and watch TV. He said he liked to cook and he turned on the Spice channel. After a brief pause he said, "Wow." I laughed so hard that I cried.

Kurt Preston: Calling a game at County Stadium on a unusually hot night in July, and the stadium’s lights were going out. Bob Uecker made a personal request to all the listeners on radio (I remember because we had a transistor radio) for all the fans to turn off the air conditioning so we could finish the game. Short time later, the lights were coming back on and, the next inning, Mike Hegan hit a three-run homer to beat the White Sox, 6-3, in 12 innings! An epic night and call on the radio!

Paul Castino, Wauwatosa: I'll always remember his call of a game in the fall of 1982 when Pete Ladd first came out of the bullpen. Ueck described him as "a giant of a man." It was hilarious.

Dan, Neenah: This is recency bias since there are so many Uecker stories. This one is mundane, too, which kind of makes it better. Two summers ago, right on the depths of the dog days, I was doing the non-fun kind of backyard garden work. I guess that’s most garden work — pretty sure I was ripping up sod. I had my earbuds in and was listening to the Sunday afternoon game with Ueck and I think (Jeff) Levering. Somehow, they got to talking about old locker rooms and how everyone used to put their valuables in a single locked safe. He got onto this whole story about how one guy didn’t trust this system, so he played with his actual wallet in his pocket. Can you imagine today? This went on for an inning or two — Bob getting more animated with the story the more his sidekick (I think Jeff) laughed. I was in the backyard crying I was laughing so hard. My wife came out and asked if I was listening to a standup comedian. Just said no, listening to Ueck tell a story.

Pete Schmidt, West Bend: When Ron "The Little General" Theobald hit a home run and Ueck fainted. Or naming the young players of the '73 team the Kiddie Corps, which included Pedro Garcia and Bobby Coluccio.

Ian Pomplin, Redgranite: Bob telling the story when he was driving home from the ballpark, eating a bratwurst by cooking it bite by bite in his cigarette lighter always had me in tears, laughing.

Jon, Gresham. Bob getting booed at Wrigley for singing, “Root , root , root for the Brewers" with a huge smile on his face!

Eric from Silver Lake: It was a random game a few years back — I don't even recall which — and Bob Uecker was just riffing on how the MLB schedule used to be made — hilariously, of course. It was a moment that made you think, "This guy is one of a kind."

Steve in Milwaukee: Wrigleyville sitcom broadcast (in 2014, when he spent part of the broadcast adding details to a make-believe sitcom involving the Wrigley rooftop seats).

Barrenlens (from Bluesky): Honestly, my favorite was his read of a sponsorhip by (I think) the Wisconsin Dental Association. Their slogan was "the sign of a dentist who cares." After several years, he started reading it as "the sign of a dentist ... who cares." The pause was very large every day. They dropped the sponsorship.

Patman (from Bluesky): When he played left field in an old timers game at County stadium and every ball hit to him, he threw in the stands. My dad, who I was with, just laughed and laughed. We all loved Ueck. I'm glad we got to meet him on some of the old Brewer winter tours.

Cherry Styles (from Bluesky): This isn't a favorite, but one my family quotes often when we want to change the subject. Ueck was calling a game in 2011 and was calling an at-bat like, "and here's the pitch ... Heyyy! Did you hear about the royal wedding?" No clue what happened in that at-bat. Started on a royal wedding tangent.

Jason Collins (from Bluesky): I used to listen to games with my dad every night when I was a kid. Back then, they had the home run inning. I think the pot started at $50 and went up $50 if there wasn’t a Brewers home run in the inning. It got to over $1,000 and the contestant one night was a lady named Myrtle Steele. Uecker and Pat Hughes just thought that name was hilarious and were rooting like crazy for a HR. Someone hit one, and for the rest of the game, they were talking about Myrtle Steele winning $1,000+. It was a riot. Dad and I still mention the Myrtle Steele game every once in a while.

Paul Shedivy, Mukwonago: When everyone was eagerly awaiting Michael Jordan's first hit with the Chicago White Sox, someone asked Uecker when he thinks Jordan will get his first hit. "Those pitchers in the Majors are pretty good," he said, "it won't be long before they hit his bat."

Dave from Mequon: Working in the garage with the AM radio on, listening to Ueck in a seemingly meaningless game, cracking jokes. It always made me stop what I was doing and listen to the cracks until they went to commercial. It was usually a warm summer day. When I think of summer in the dead of winter, this is what I think of to put me in my happy place.

The moments of joy ... and some heartbreak

Mike Steeno, Two Rivers: Sixto Lezcano's walk-off grand slam on Opening Day at County Stadium on April 10, 1980. Was listening with an earplug on my transistor radio in algebra class and could not contain myself from yelping and fist-pumping after Uecker's hysterical call. The detention was worth it.

Mark B from Port Washington: 1981 playoff clincher, "Goodbye, Detroit. Hello, New York!"

Matthew Reimer, Whitestown, Indiana): Easter Sunday 1987. My grandmother refused to let us eat Easter ham in a parking lot so we had to listen to the game in my grandparents' backyard. Still remember running around like crazy after Deer's home run.

Pat Bergin, Racine: Easter Sunday 1987. His call of Dale Sveum's home run.

Adam Van Chazzo, Middleton: Easter Sunday 1987. Deer and Sveum.

David, Mequon. There's certainly the Sveum homer on Easter Sunday, but what I remember is the call of the Deer homer that preceded it and tied the game. That's my favorite of all time.

Mark Larson, La Crosse: Short and sweet, it's "Robin's flying around third!" to score yet another big run.

Scott, Greenfield: "Swings and there it is! He's done it! Three thousand for Robin!"

Jerry Franke, Mount Pleasant: The call of Ryan Braun’s eighth-inning HR against the Cubs on 9/28/08. It was iconic. I was there but heard the replay of the call on WTMJ radio and made it the ring tone on my phone. The hair on the back of my neck still stands up every time I hear it.

Kevin, Waupaca: CC Sabathia's last game in 2008. I was so hungry for postseason games. CC and Braunie delivered. Bob was great as always. My favorite of the thousands of games that I "watched" on the radio. Love and miss you, Bob.

Ryan M, Milwaukee: 9-28-08, bottom of the eighth against the Cubs. His Ryan Braun home run call still gives me chills. It meant so much to us as fans, even more to him as a lifelong Brewer.

J.P., Boston: In 2002, the Brewers were lousy. I was driving to a wedding in Appleton, listening to a Phillies-Brewers matinee in late August. Utility player Izzy Alcántara did not run out a ground ball. Uecker let him have it on the air: "This may be a team that loses 100 games, but you CANNOT be lazy out there! This is a working class city, working class fans, there are paying customers here. Alcantara! Mm, gah! That's just unacceptable." Alcántara was released the next day. Never played in the majors again.

Jake Gropp: Has to be his very last game, (where he said,) "That one stings, folks." We could all just feel his heartache along with ours. And now hopefully this year's magic with him watching over, we can take it all the way this year.

The way he brought us together

Lynn Smith, Waukesha: After 20 years in the Army, my son and his family were moving back to Wisconsin — Trego, Wisconsin. I called him during the move to see how it was going. He said he was listening to the Brewer game while he unpacked. He said, “As soon as I heard Bob Uecker’s voice, I knew I was home.” That quote is stuck in my head every time I hear a Brewer game now.

Traci, Appleton: When I was a kid, my family went to Saz's after a game. Ueck was at the next table and my cousin and I wanted to go up to him, but my family said let him eat. Anyway, after he was done eating, he stopped at our table, thanked us for not disturbing him, chatted for a bit and gave us autographs.

Glen Mabie, Eau Claire: Realizing as I sat listening to Bob Uecker call a Sunday afternoon game that I had also listened to him with my children and my father, That made four generations of our family sitting around the radio, listening to Ueck. Those are pretty special memories.

George, Kenosha: I became enamored with Bob because my mother would sit and listen to Bob on the radio in the kitchen; it was the Brewers' early days and she hoped for a blowout because Bob would turn into the greatest story-teller. She couldn’t wait for the next Brewers loss.

Jeff Pieters, Rochester, Minnesota: I was 12 years old at Game 5 against the Cardinals at County Stadium in 1982. Before the game, I was standing up and looking around. Our seats were in the section behind home plate, under the net. I looked up at the press box and saw Uecker looking down at me. I waved. He waved back. I imagine he was thinking what it must have been like for a kid to be at such a special game. And it really was a special experience, but the most memorable moment in it was that quiet connection.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Readers share with us their favorite Bob Uecker stories