Something Brewing

By Mike Rifkin

The Milwaukee Brewers had a fantastic week of baseball. The Brewers took two of three from the Dodgers and swept the Cleveland Guardians, two of the best teams in baseball. The Brewers outscored the Guardians 9-4 over the three games. 

The Brewers own a 11 game lead in the NL Central, the largest division lead across MLB. The Brewers are one game behind the Phillies for best record in the National League and MLB. Most people expected the Brewers to take a step back this season, after the departures of Corbin Burnes and Craig Counsell, and Brandon Woodruff not being able to pitch this season and closer Devin Williams missing the first three months of the season. 

The Brewers have not missed a beat, they are second in ERA only behind the Mariners, last year the Brewers led the league in ERA.. Colin Rea leads the starters with a 3.52 ERA and 11 wins on the season.

 The Brewers young players have made a massive impact, as they are third in baseball in stolen bases. Brice Turang has 37, Jackso Chourio and Blake Perkins have 17 each, Sal Frelick has 15, and Willy Adames has 13. Christian Yelich had 21, before announcing he will miss the rest of the season undergoing back surgery. Yelich was having an renaissance season, before going on the injured list. But the Brewers have been down this road before, playing without Yelich and they’ll have to do it again now. 

Whatever happens in October remains to be seen, but the job Matt Arnold and Pat Murphy have done in replacing David Stearns and Craig Counsell has been amazing. The Brewers have that next man up mentality, and they have shown a ton of resilience. 2024 is a special season for the Brewers.