This story was excerpted from Adam McCalvy¡¯s Brewers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
PHOENIX -- If you grew up in Wisconsin, there¡¯s a fair chance you know your way around a cribbage board. That makes first baseman Rowdy Tellez and outfield prospect Joey Wiemer perfect players for the Brewers.?
Most mornings at 8 a.m., you¡¯ll find the duo dealing hands of cribbage, a game that involves grouping cards adding up to 15, but sometimes to 31, along with pegging and nibs and nobs. Trust us, it¡¯s fun. Tellez and Wiemer have quite a rivalry going, even if it¡¯s one-sided so far.?
¡°He¡¯s been running me in it,¡± Wiemer said. ¡°I¡¯m going to have to get better.¡±?
Triple-A Nashville teammate Marcus Walden taught Wiemer the game last season, so Wiemer is at a disadvantage when it comes to experience. Tellez has been playing cribbage since he was six years old, having learned the game from his mother and grandfather. They¡¯re from Minnesota.?
¡°I heard it¡¯s a Midwest game,¡± Tellez said. ¡°I think it¡¯s a really fun game. A lot of people learn it in pro ball and think they¡¯re good, but I¡¯m the greatest player to ever play, if I had to guess.¡±
He¡¯s not the first ballplayer to feel this way.?
¡°I would love to play Dustin Pedroia, Terry Francona. I heard they¡¯re really good,¡± Tellez said. ¡°I would love to play them and test my skills because there¡¯s nobody in here who can hang with me. I¡¯d like to play Wade?[Miley], though. I heard he is really good.¡±?
Wade Miley didn¡¯t sound intimidated.
¡°Anybody who¡¯s that comfortable with their skills,¡± the veteran left-hander said, ¡°can¡¯t be that good.¡±
Tellez said there¡¯s a cribbage board in just about every clubhouse around the league. That¡¯s part of the culture of the game -- elaborate wooden boards of various shapes for keeping score. One of Tellez¡¯s family friends makes custom cribbage boards and has gifted a number of them to Tellez over the years.?
Not too long ago, card games were ubiquitous in clubhouses around baseball. They are generally less common today, sometimes for reasons of interior decorating (the Brewers¡¯ clubhouse in Milwaukee, for example, has plenty of couches but no card tables) and sometimes for reasons of technology.?
¡°Cell phones have taken over,¡± Tellez said.?
Not at 8 a.m. in Maryvale. Tellez and Wiemer have started to draw a crowd around the table as they deal cards. Now, there¡¯s a dispute about this, but according to Tellez, onlookers this week witnessed Wiemer commit one of the ultimate cribbage sins: He forgot to count nobs.?
Tellez let him have it.
¡°I love cribbage,¡± Tellez said. ¡°It¡¯s a good way to kill time, and it keeps the mind going because you have to think about strategy, how you want to set up your partner to gain points for yourself. I think it¡¯s a great game.¡±