Hank, the Milwaukee Brewers' beloved ballpark pup, has died
By Hannah Kirby, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel,
2024-09-13
They say all dogs go to heaven. Then, that's where Milwaukee Brewers legend Hank has gone.
"The beloved Hank, 'The Ballpark Pup,' passed away earlier today," the Brewers shared in a news release Thursday night.
The furry white dog was small, but made a major league impact on the ball club and its fanbase.
The tale goes, Hank was a scruffy stray — with a tire mark on his fur and an injured tail — who wandered up to the Brewers' spring training facility in Arizona back in February 2014.
According to previous Journal Sentinel reports , the 2- or 3-year-old bichon frise mix ignited a team in the doldrums after an excruciating 2013 season. He was cleaned up, checked up and loved up by Brewers coaches, players and personnel.
"Throughout that spring, Hank spent his days at the complex and his nights in the safety of Brewers homes," the news release said. "Every day, Hank participated in team activities, ranging from workouts on the field to doing meet and greets with fans attending games."
Hank's welcome party to Bre w City included then-Mayor Tom Barrett, former Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele, Brewers executives, television crews, kiddos eager to meet the four-legged phenom, and hundreds hoping to catch a glimpse.
“Hank was truly loved by our family and we are so grateful for the ten years we had with him," Wronski said in the news release. "Hank seemed to know that he was rescued by the entire Brewers family and he never met a fan – or really any human – he didn’t love. We are heartbroken to be without him but are grateful for the joy he brought to so many and the spotlight he helped shine on animal rescue.”
When Hank made his Miller Park debut in March 2014, fans got up at 4:30 a.m. to get in line for a 7 a.m. meet-and-greet. As the sun came up, a few hundred people were there.
"It was March madness as one grinning person after another knelt or leaned down next to Hank for a photo. They cooed at him, "Oh my God, he's so cute!" and "Good boy!" and many variations of "Awwww," wrote former Journal Sentinel columnist Jim Stingl .
In Hank's heyday, there were bobbleheads, T-shirts, plush toys, locker name plates, buttons, bumper stickers, pennants and other memorabilia, all sporting his likeness. Six-thousand plushies of him sold in a matter of weeks, according to The Arizona Republic .
In January 2015, Hank was named “Dog of the Year” at the CW Network's World Dog Awards in Los Angeles, MLB.com reported .
"We thought it would be a 20-minute story on social media," Rick Schlesinger, Brewers president of business operations, said back in 2016 . "The power of Hank is incredible."
Hank faded out of the spotlight to live a dog's life.
For those who wish to honor the life of Hank, the Brewers and Wronski family encourage donations to the Wisconsin Humane Society or MADACC (Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission), the release said.
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