Bud Selig

Selig's love of baseball remained strong. When the Braves moved to Milwaukee from Boston in 1953, he became an avid supporter and eventually became the largest public investor in the team. Shortly after the Braves decamped for Atlanta in 1965, Selig formed an organization called Teams Inc., dedicated to bringing major league baseball back to Milwaukee. Teams Inc., which later changed its name to The Brewers, made an unsuccessful bid for the Chicago White Sox in 1969 but a year later got lucky when a federal bankruptcy referee awarded the failing Seattle Pilots to the organization. Shortly thereafter, Selig, the principal owner, was named president of the Brewers organization.

In sharp contrast with his current situation as baseball commissioner, Selig was widely praised for his management of the Brewers franchise. Twelve years after the team made its new home in Milwaukee, the Brewers advanced to the World Series, where they lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. The Brewers won an unprecedented three consecutive Baseball America awards in 1985, 1986, and 1987, and in 1978 Selig himself was named Major League Executive of the Year by United Press International.