Reddit AMA: Best moment so far? How are this Crew different?

MILWAUKEE – With the National League Division Series on deck, MLB.com Brewers beat reporter Adam McCalvy held an Ask Me Anything on Reddit with fans at r/brewers on Wednesday. This mailbag features questions and answers from there. The full AMA can be read here.

What moment from this year will stick with you past this season? Could be a specific play, a particularly good game, etc.

Every year for the past few years, Ken Spindler of the Brewers’ broadcasting and publications department asks me to write a season recap for the postseason program at AmFam Field. Every year, I regret saying yes while I'm spending hours poring through box scores and wraps to write a 6,000-word story. But then in the end, I’m thankful I did it, because inevitably I’m reminded of the many great and brutal moments that tell the story of a baseball season. When you’re riding the wave, it’s so easy to forget Bobby Jr. the tortoise in Kansas City, William Contreras hitting a homer from his butt in Las Vegas or Brice Turang hitting a walk-off homer with a pink bat on Mother’s Day, 20 years after Bill Hall started that tradition.

But here’s the one I’d forgotten that sticks with me the most:

Sal Frelick’s rally-sparking single that got stuck in the mud.

Remember that one? The Brewers were so injured at the time, and they’d lost six games in a row for the first time in three years. It looked like they were headed for a seventh on a dreary day in Milwaukee, when it was raining just hard enough for some raindrops to fall through the pivot in the roof onto the dirt right in front of home plate.

Frelick pounded a pitch into the wet ground and it bounced high in the air. Blue Jays catcher Brandon Valenzuela waited for it to come down in the hope it would spin foul.

Instead, splat.

The ball just … died.

Valenzuela fumbled the ball for what was ruled an error and the Brewers had the break they needed in what became a 2-1 win.

“I don’t know that we’re out of the funk we’re in,” Pat Murphy said that day. “It just feels nice to win a ballgame and have the guys regain some belief.”

Is that the day the Brewers began to believe? I don’t know. But it’s one of the moments I’ll remember about a team that just found a way to win.

One reason why this year is different? And what’s one concern this year?

I've spent the past week or so asking players and coaches a version of these questions: What makes this team different? Why is this year the year?

We have those answers planned to roll out on Friday, but here's my answer:

This team, more than the others in recent seasons, plays all 27 outs. That might sound so basic for professional athletes, but it is not a given over the grind of 162. Even the best teams get down early and roll over sometimes. This team just doesn't do that. And they don't coast; they were 18-6 in September even though they essentially had the division locked up. Last September, they were 12-12. The year before that, 13-13.

Biggest concern? Home runs. Murphy hates this narrative -- that homers win in the postseason, when you're facing the top pitching staffs and the bullpens are rested because of all of the travel days baked in. I still believe you have to be able to win in October without relying on a sustained rally. We'll see.​

Robert Gasser has to be the third starter for the NLDS right?

Not necessarily. He pitched great down the stretch -- 1.67 ERA over his last six outings, starting with that that brilliant emergency relief outing when Dustin May was struck by a comebacker on the very first pitch. But if we know anything about the Brewers, it's that they will have some surprises in store when it comes to the pitching in the postseason. With all of the multi-inning arms that appear ticketed for the NLDS bullpen, some kind of opener strategy is on the table once again. That's something they employed early and often last year against the Cubs and Dodgers. And with all of the Padres' right-handed-hitting stars, Gasser might not be the best matchup should San Diego be the opponent.

Gasser will play a role, for sure. He earned it. I just wouldn't lock him in as a traditional starting pitcher for this round.

What do you see Kyle Harrison’s role looking like in the postseason? Do you think he’ll go multiple innings if a starter struggles, or pitch in very key roles?

We've been maintaining a running NLDS roster projection in our Brewers postseason FAQ on the site, and I initially had Harrison on the outside looking in for the first round. But I changed that during the final weekend of the regular season after a series of encouraging outings. First, the stuff ticked up. Then, the results came. His final, two-inning outing against the Cardinals was much more like it. And based on Murphy's tepid responses about May, and encouraging responses about Harrison, I amended it to put Harrison back in. Maybe there won't be a Game 3 starter at all, and the Brewers will use a collection of multi-inning arms at the start of that game.

Is there anyone on the Brewers you think could have a great playoff run out of nowhere? (À la 2018 Orlando Arcia)

I like this question. I'm going to throw a dart and say Frelick.

How’s Jake Bauers doing? A few weeks ago Murphy hinted that Bauers in right field against lefties was the preferred lineup, but since then Bauers has been pretty banged up and hasn’t played in the outfield much. The question: Will we see Bauers in the OF during the NLDS?

Murphy says yes, there will be times that Bauers plays the outfield during the postseason. He's one of several players -- Turang (knee), Joey Ortiz (knee, abdomen) are among the others -- who should benefit greatly from the bye. Bauers' shin splints definitely slowed him in August and September, so he will have to grin and bear it in October.