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MILWAUKEE (AP) - A restaurant group is ending its ties with suspended Brewers slugger Ryan Braun.
SURG Restaurant Group said in a statement Thursday it will change the name of the 8-Twelve MVP Bar & Grill in the Milwaukee suburb of Brookfield. "Eight" is Braun's jersey number, while "twelve" refers to the number worn by quarterback Aaron Rodgers with the Green Bay Packers.
Major League Baseball suspended Braun for the rest of the season in July for doping. Braun and Rodgers were friends and business associates, but Rodgers said during training camp he felt duped by Braun's previously strong denial of doping accusations.
Restaurant group co-owner Michael Polaski said he appreciated the restaurant's relationship with Braun and wished the slugger success. Braun in the same statement said he supported the decision.
The decision also affected an 8-Twelve location that had been planned in another Milwaukee-area suburb. Rodgers will continue his relationship with the restaurant group, the statement said, with a focus on community relations and charitable activities.
Also affected was the Ryan Braun's Graffito restaurant, which will stay open the rest of the year "to honor its pre-existing obligations to its customers and employees" before closing its doors after the holiday season, SURG said.
Braun passed along his "best of luck to the SURG Restaurant Group as it continues to grow," according to the statement.
The Associated Press left a message for Braun's attorney.
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