Milwaukee's Alec Marsh makes big leagues, doing something we haven't seen since Bob Uecker

Alec Marsh, a graduate of Ronald Reagan High School in Milwaukee, made his second big-league appearance Wednesday for the Kansas City Royals, faring well despite taking the loss in a 5-0 defeat to the Minnesota Twins.

Marsh appears to be the first Milwaukee Public Schools alumnus to make the big leagues since famed Brewers broadcaster Bob Uecker, the Bradley Tech graduate who last played in the majors in 1967.

Marsh allowed three runs on three hits in five innings Wednesday and successfully picked off two of the three batters to whom he issued a walk. But the Royals, in a two-horse race with Oakland for the worst record in baseball, couldn't get anything started on offense against Twins starter Pablo López, who threw a complete-game shutout.

It was nonetheless an improvement for Marsh over his first start against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday, when he allowed five earned runs in four innings. He was greeted rudely by the Dodgers' red-hot Mookie Betts, who homered to lead off the game, then homered again in his second at-bat against Marsh and followed with an RBI single in his third.

It's unclear if Marsh's stay will continue. He was promoted Friday for his big-league debut as a replacement for Jordan Lyles, a former Brewers pitcher combatting illness.

The 25-year-old Marsh had been strong in three starts at Class AAA Omaha since a June promotion, posting a 2.40 ERA over 15 innings and a 2-0 record. Regarded as one of the organization's top prospects, Marsh was added to the 40-man roster last offseason — a show of faith in the right-hander's electric strikeout ability despite injuries that dramatically limited his 2021 season and his 6.88 ERA pitching 120 innings in Class AA and Class AAA in 2022.

Marsh, who played at Arizona State, was drafted in the "compensation B" round that followed the second round (70th overall) of the 2019 draft.

In 2015, he pitched in one of the most shocking upsets in WIAA state history, when he led Reagan to a 5-0 win over Arrowhead in the sectional final. Arrowhead had just switched from summer baseball to the spring season and had lost just one game that season, with four players ticketed for Division I programs and two other all-state players. Marsh struck out 10 and allowed only five hits.

He's one of several former Wisconsinites who have seen time in MLB this year, including Alex Call (River Falls, Washington Nationals), Danny Jansen (Appleton West, Toronto Blue Jays), Jarred Kelenic (Waukesha West, Seattle Mariners), Owen Miller (Ozaukee, Milwaukee Brewers), Ben Rortvedt (Verona, New York Yankees), Daulton Varsho (Marshfield, Toronto Blue Jays) and Terrin Vavra (Menomonie, Baltimore Orioles).

But to find players specifically from a Milwaukee public school, you have to go back to the days of Uecker, who played from 1962 to 1967, and Tony Kubek, the 1957 American League Rookie of the Year who played with the Yankees from 1957 to 1965 and attended Bay View High School.

Todd Frohwirth, who attended Messmer High School, pitched in the big leagues from 1987 to 1996 before becoming a successful girls basketball coach in the Milwaukee area, leading both Whitefish Bay and Mukwonago to state-championship games before his death in 2017.

Greg Mahlberg, who played at catcher briefly for the Texas Rangers in the big leagues in 1978 and 1979, attended Wisconsin Lutheran High School and the University of Wisconsin.

Harvey Kuenn, who went on to lead the Brewers to the World Series as manager in 1982, was the 1953 American League Rookie of the Year with the Detroit Tigers, won the 1959 batting title and made eight all-star teams before his playing career ended in 1966. Kuenn attended Milwaukee Lutheran and the University of Wisconsin.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Alec Marsh becomes first MPS alumnus in big leagues since Bob Uecker