Brewers Honour Nellie With Jersey Patch

The Milwaukee Brewers are paying respects to one of their fallen this weekend during a four-game set against the St. Louis Cardinals by wearing a memorial patch for Dave Nelson the entire series.

Nelson played many roles with the Brewers since he was hired by the club in 2001, after starting as a coach he moved into the front office before finally moving behind the mic as a broadcaster for the team. Nelson also spent several seasons playing the Major Leagues including a spot on the American League All-Star team in 1973. During his playing days Nelson played with the Cleveland Indians, Washington Senators/Texas Rangers, and Kansas City Royals.

The memorial patch shows Nelson’s signature abbreviated to “Nellie” in white on a black circle with gold trim around it, at the bottom of the logo are three human figures, these figures are from the logo used by the Open Arms Home for Children in South Africa, a charity which was very important to Nelson, so much so he served on its board of directors.

In addition to the memorial patch, the Brewers re-named the right field corner of Miller Park “Nellie’s Corner” and installed a memorial plaque as well as a sign. Nelson regularly did his pre and post-game shows for Brewers broadcasts from a stage set up in that corner during his time as a broadcaster for the club.

Fans attending the game on Saturday were given the option of getting a special lapel pin in exchange for a $10 donation to the Open Arms Home for Children in South Africa, the proceeds from the 50-50 raffle that day were also given to the charity.

Nelson died on April 23, 2018 in Milwaukee at the age of 73.