MILWAUKEE -- So much of this Brewers season felt familiar. They traded away an All-Star (Freddy Peralta) who was approaching free agency in exchange for prospects in order to control costs and keep the pipeline full of talent. They bucked preseason projections to win the National League Central. They finished with the best record in MLB for the second straight year. They relied on young position players and even younger pitchers. Rinse and repeat from recent years.
But this year, however, they hope the final outcome is different. They want a World Series.
“We don’t use that underdog card anymore because we proved what we proved over the last few years,” manager Pat Murphy said. “Yeah, we’re young, but we ain’t going to be anyone’s underdog.”
So, after falling short of the Fall Classic in each of their past nine trips to the postseason, including in seven of the previous eight years, what makes this the year for the Brewers?
In other words, why is this team different?
We asked around.
Outfielder Garrett Mitchell
“That’s a good question. The group of guys in this clubhouse, from top to bottom, it’s built for success, right? Focused on each day. ‘Winning the day.’ I don’t feel like that’s changed as the years have gone by, but what feels different is that we’re in it until the 27th out. This year, even down to the last out, we still have a chance. That feels different. It feels like the guys, including me, too, who were younger the last couple of years, are a little bit older and have been in this situation a little bit more and understand what needs to be done. But no one is trying to do more than their role. It’s trusting each guy from the top to the bottom.”
First baseman Jake Bauers
“When I think back to last year, I think there was an element of, maybe, a little bit of lack of belief that we could do it. Maybe a little too much doubt. And I think going into this postseason there's a different feeling around the team. I think there's been a concerted effort to make sure that everybody in the room knows what we're capable of, and that it doesn't require anybody to do something that they're not able to do. I think we've built a really good team, a really good culture, and I think we believe in each other. I think we all know that whether one person doesn't get it done, there's someone right behind them that's going to be ready to pick them up. That's something that we've done all year, and I think that's only added to the confidence.
“So I think you look at last season as an opportunity to learn from it, an opportunity to grow from it, and an opportunity to take what maybe we lacked in last year and improve upon that this year.”
Captain Christian Yelich
“I just think we’re really good at finding ways to win games. It’s different every night. It’s not really the same formula, but we find a way to win when it’s ‘winning time’ late in the game. Guys make pitches, guys find a way to get on base, find a way to get a big hit. That’s what you need to win in October. You need to win moments.”
Offense and strategy coordinator Jason Lane
“We double down on execution with this group. In these playoff games, there might be one shot at that moment, so you have to be ready for it. You have to be ahead of it. I know a lot of people talk about, ‘You have to homer in the playoffs,’ but I think it’s usually the team that beats themselves that loses, you know what I mean? A lot of times, it’s a PFP [pitcher’s fielding practice] or something like that, and a game swings out of balance. But we’ve done a good job of executing in those moments. We can walk, we can put pressure on you with speed on the bases, and I feel like we have the guys throughout the lineup that can hit home runs. We can stagger the lineup where we don’t get too right- or left-handed heavy where we’re vulnerable to bullpens. I just think we’re a balanced team.”
President of baseball operations Matt Arnold
“There’s a different edge to this team. I was talking to Jason Shawger about this a little bit. He’s the director of equipment, best in the business. He’s been here a long time and been around these teams forever. They’re bonded together in a really unique way, they’re well-balanced in a unique way. And I think they’ll be ready.”
Second baseman Brice Turang
“It’s the guys in this room. It’s the bond that we’ve put together. Guys get along with each other in here, and there’s a buy-in factor. It seems like everybody is going into every game to win and making that their No. 1 goal. We all have that one goal. Maybe it’s the experience, that a lot of the guys have been there, done that. We have a lot of guys who might have been rookies last year and are now a little bit older, guys who have two or three years and are now a little bit older. And then you also have your vets. We’re leaning on each other to help each other through those times. It’s the experience that we carry in this clubhouse.”
Pitcher Brandon Woodruff
“I genuinely think that looking back on the last seven teams, this one genuinely seems to gel more with each other in the clubhouse. They’ve always said, ‘Teams that gamble together, win together.’ And we have our ways.”
He nodded to a portable craps table in the middle of the clubhouse and a dice game simulating horse racing that supplied hours of entertainment in recent weeks -- complete with trumpet fanfare to signal a race is about to begin.
“No matter what group it is, no matter what ethnicity or whatever, we gel together. I think that’s the biggest difference. You have to have a clubhouse that pulls for that. You can’t have a bunch of individuals. That starts with the front office and Murph. He’s the leader of that, and then it’s our job as veterans in here to make sure that it’s a good clubhouse environment. That’s a big part of it. That’s massive. You think back as a kid to playing [video games] when you’re the team manager. You have to turn the team chemistry attribution way up in order to be successful.”
Catcher William Contreras
“We have a lot of belief in ourselves. We have a young group here, and it’s important to know that the postseason isn’t the same as the regular season. But it’s no question that we have great expectations for this team and expectations to be in the World Series and win it. It’s a question about doing that, but I think we have the right guys here in the room and we have the belief that we can do it.”
Owner Mark Attanasio
“I’d say that you can see the caliber of the celebrations. This is hard to believe, four division titles in a row, and every year the celebration’s gotten a little less festive -- still spirited, but a little less like it’s a big surprise.”
Murphy
“I think this team’s more confident. Lighter, in that they don’t stress over little things as much. This team knows they need each other, so therefore I think they’re more accountable to each other. And I think they generally say, ‘Why not us? Let’s just do it.’
“We know what we went through last year and the year before.’ We didn’t finish the last inning [in 2024] but we had a really good club, a good fiber. Last year, most wins in baseball, got the bye, then an emotional series win [over the Cubs in the NLDS], then, whew, ran into a really hot team [against the Dodgers in the NLCS] and could never get our grip.
“I think we’re ready. There’s going to be much adversity. I think they know that and I think they’ll keep their belief and be able to respond -- hopefully, very quickly. But in baseball, things can snowball in three pitches, and all of a sudden, boom. The best team doesn’t always win the World Series. … That’s why I love the regular season. I’m not saying I don’t love the postseason. I love the postseason and am planning on a big postseason. You put yourself in this position and then, hopefully, you can bounce back quickly from any adversity and relentlessly pursue it, and win those 11 games.”
That quest begins Saturday night.
“Only one team gets that joy,” Murphy said. “But you have to begin with a fundamental belief that it’s going to be you.”