Now that the Mets are back in town for a three-game series with the Brewers starting tonight, I've decided to re-alert you to Milwaukee author Joey Buchholz's book about his love of both teams. This article on the book first ran in March. Enjoy!
While some believe fans can't divide their loyalties, those folks haven't met Milwaukee's Joey Buchholz.
Buchholz -- who lives in Greenfield and works at the UW Credit Union -- is a fan of both his hometown Brewers and his adopted New York Mets. He is also the author of a self-published book about his dual fandom, "Two Loves: The Story of a Baseball Polygamist."
Over the course of more than 300 pages, Buchholz traces the ups and downs of his two teams and in the meantime explains his love for two teams that had never faced one another before 1998, when the Brewers moved to the National League.
Geography made Buchholz a Brewers fan and TV introduced him to the Mets, he says.
"My mom got me into the Brewers at a young age, but the games weren't televised a lot in 1983," he says. "But when we got cable, I asked the cable guy if we got more baseball games. He showed me the schedule. A lot of Cubs, Braves and Mets (via the) superstations. The Mets were on earlier then the Cubs, and I couldn't root for the Braves, because of them leaving Milwaukee. So I started watching the Mets pretty frequently, and have been a fan ever since."
Buccholz says that when he heard Simmons question divided loyalties, the idea for "Two Loves" was born.
"The idea for the book was based on a Bill Simmons article I read about how people cannot be a fan of two teams. I remember trying to email him, but he never responded," says Buchholz. "When Glavine was going for (win) No. 300, I blogged about it that night, and it was fun. That night, I decided I wanted to write more about baseball. I walked into work, and told my buddies that I was going to write a book."
"Polygamist" fans are increasingly less rare, thanks to the ever-more mobile society in which we live. Plenty of people grow up a fan of their hometown team and after a move, learn to share their allegiance with the team based in the new
hometown.
But, Buchholz says, he stills hears about it from the Brewers fans in his life.
"I do get teased by a lot of Brewers fans, who know I love the Mets, but I have been fortunate to meet a handful of fans of both teams," Buchholz says. "They are all mentioned in the book. They all became fans of the Mets for different reasons. I usually just tell people that the Brewers are my brother and the Mets are my lover."
Although a little rough around the edges -- to be expected in a book not vetted by a professional editor and publishing house -- "Two Loves" is charming and, best of all, Buchholz's passion bleeds from every page, making it an enjoyable read.
The photos of the author at Shea Stadium, Miller Park and other stadia -- as well as one of him with the legendary Freeway -- are snapshots that welcome us into Buchholz's fandom.
As a life-long Mets fan who always had a soft spot for the Brewers and became a dual fan after moving to Milwaukee many years ago, I couldn't resist putting Buchholz to the test.
The Mets and Brewers are tied, 3-3, in the NLCS. Who do you root for in Game 7?
"I was hoping to answer that final question last year had they met in the playoffs. I guess it depends on where the game is being played," Buchholz says. "I've always rooted for the home team, with the exception being the Glavine game in 2007. Not to give away the ending, but when the Brewers beat the Cubs on that final day, I was elated, but minutes later, when the Mets lost to Florida, I was sick to my stomach. Three straight years of disappointment. The Brewers had just made the playoffs for the first time in 26 years, and I was sad that the Mets were done. And it was the last game ever at Shea."
OK, OK, quit stalling...
"To answer your question, I would be happy either way, but I'd be alone in my apartment, rooting for the Mets. But if the Brewers won, I'd most likely have a quiet moment to myself, and hopefully ride the Brewers to their first title."
To order a copy of "Two Loves," contact the author at joeybuchholz.twoloves@gmail.com.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
