Not many people get the rare opportunity to have a first person perspective of an MLB dugout. In fact, many fans are satisfied by simply being in the presence of their favorite athletes. Brookfield Central senior Luke Sommerfeld, however, was able to get closer than ever to the Brewers players, as he was fortunate enough to be a batboy at one of their spring training games last March at Maryvale Baseball Park in Phoenix, Arizona. “I made sure all of the players had what they needed, and I gave all the players high fives when they came in from the dugout. It was surreal,” Sommerfeld said.

When asked what his favorite part of being a batboy was, Sommerfeld brought up his observations of Ryan Braun. Excitedly, he said, “Since [Braun] wasn’t playing in the game, I was able to watch how he interacted with his teammates.”

Sommerfeld noted that Braun, who had missed the final 65 games of the 2013 Brewer season due to a PED suspension, appeared to be integrating back into the clubhouse atmosphere quite nicely. “It literally looked like nothing had changed. I think that some of them were upset with him initially, but it looks like they really took his apologies to heart,” He said. Sommerfeld added that even catcher Jonathan Lucroy, who had made some very blunt statements after hearing about the suspension, gave Braun a high five when he came back from hitting a home run.

When asked what he thought of Braun, Sommerfeld replied, “I was sort of on the fence, but after seeing how his teammates treat him, I feel like I have no reason to really stay mad at him.” Most fans in Wisconsin are only able to see the statistics of the games, which is more than enough reason to give Braun a second chance.

Despite it being only a spring training game, Sommerfeld definitely took advantage of his unique opportunity and took his experience with Brewers to a whole new level.  “Even though it doesn’t technically count, it’s the best Brewers game I’ve ever been to,” Sommerfeld said. “It gave me a whole new look at my favorite players and how they act during the game.”