Wisconsin cranberry growers have turned a harvest break into a show of support for the Milwaukee Brewers, building a giant cranberry baseball glove that stretches 100 feet by 115 feet. The display, made with millions of cranberries, was put together after the team clinched the National League title and arrives as attention turns to the Brewers' World Series push.
Fawn Gottschalk said the idea came together late last week, and she said she was four the last time the Brewers went to the World Series. She planned to be at American Family Field on Friday, and said this one might not come around again in her lifetime, which is part of why the project felt worth the effort.
Kris Parker built the design on his computer and then spent hours in the bog helping fill in the glove shape and clear berries around it. He said it turned out better than he imagined, but also put the pressure plainly on the team: after so much work, he said, the Brewers have to win.
The glove is more than a fan gesture. It brings together many cranberry farmers and the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association, and it leans on Wisconsin's place at the center of the crop. The state produces about one-third of the world's cranberries and has led production for many years, so the display doubles as a local sports salute and a reminder of what the region grows best.
What happens next is now in the Brewers' hands. The cranberry glove will not decide the series, but it has already done its job: it marks the moment Wisconsin moved from watching the Brewers chase a title to helping decorate the run with a sight no one will miss.
