Are the Brewers as good as their MLB-leading record?

[Thurston Fluff]

1 hour ago, owbc said:

I agree that it's a fair question to ask because it's hard to show anything definitive statistically, but that 2018 team was full of vets. I think the shoddy defense in the 2024 wild card round can be at least partially attributed to playoff inexperience. The 2025 Brewers are one of the youngest teams in MLB. 

I've just seen it too many times where some of these experienced teams coast through the regular season and then suddenly find another gear in the postseason. I think of the Castellanos quote in particular: “A lot of time I have trouble keeping focused everyday 9 innings in the regular season, but with the postseason the baseball’s incredible you don’t have a choice but to be locked in and I think that’s just kinda why I’m playing better.”

 

Isn't it also possible some who've already found success in the playoffs lose some of the intensity because they've been there done that? If one can lose focus playing in the regular season because it's nothing new why not of the post season? 

[kestrel79]

I think what this team has this season is they have the pitching and scrappyness/clutch to be that team that we always talk about that gets hot at the right time and can win it all. Doing it for Uke has a nice ring to it too.

They're on a mission from God.

[HarryDoyle]

The streak was fun and all, and even if this team plays .500 ball the rest of the way they'll finish with 91 wins which will most certainly get them in the playoffs, but if they suffer another first round exit, they'll just be known as a regular season warrior once again, much like those Moneyball A's teams.

[gregmag]

Here's a tidbit: Since June 14, the Brewers have gone 22-7.  Of the seven losses, four have been by one run, two have been by two runs, and one -- the Miz Mets game -- has been by four runs.  In about a month's worth of games, the Brewers have lost decisively exactly once.  (Of the wins, eight were by one run, four were by two runs, and ten were by three or more runs.)

[willie key]

The lineup below would give them a great chance of doing something in postseason 

1. frelick

2. chourio

3. yelich

4. trade for good hitter

5. Turang/collins

6. Collins/turang

7. Vaughn/1b

8. Contreras

9. Ortiz 

 

 

[Brian]

On 7/22/2025 at 5:47 PM, Thurston Fluff said:

Isn't it also possible some who've already found success in the playoffs lose some of the intensity because they've been there done that? If one can lose focus playing in the regular season because it's nothing new why not of the post season? 

I think the exact opposite is true,  Veterans can turn it up a notch in the playoffs limelight but the long season grind wears on the Vets more than the hungry young players. 

[homer]

Their Pythagorean record is 61 - 41 so yes, they are as good as their record  :)

[MadScientist]

The Brewers are a case of the whole being better than the sum of the parts.  They just work. 

[treego14]

Yes, they did NOT cheat their way to the best record via unfair revenue/resources vs. other teams nor through great media exposure nor through crooked umpiring favoring the Brewers nor through the use of torpedo bats. 

All said, they earned the best record in the MLB! 

Hard earned, I might add!

[Brian]

22 hours ago, kestrel79 said:

I think what this team has this season is they have the pitching and scrappyness/clutch to be that team that we always talk about that gets hot at the right time and can win it all. Doing it for Uke has a nice ring to it too.

They're on a mission from God.

Even Joe Maddon said its the fundamentals the Brewers and Blue Jays have which the Yankees and Dodgers are getting away from.  Baseball is a craft especially in the details which should not be learned once you get called up. 

[owbc]

I think the Mets showed us what the formula is to beat the Brewers in the postseason -- get them in a low scoring game that is a battle of high leverage arms and be the lucky ones who get the bigger clutch hit. Same as the 1-0 loss to the Mariners -- the Brewers could easily have won that game and it just came down to luck essentially. 

As soon as the opposing pitching shows cracks the Brewers are insanely good at taking advantage. 

I think getting the bye out of the wild card round is the #1 key to postseason success for the Brewers. The opponent can't immediately throw their top arms at us and a deeper series will give our depth more time to shine. I think our advantage will be greatest in a 7-game series. 

[Thurston Fluff]

5 hours ago, Brian said:

I think the exact opposite is true,  Veterans can turn it up a notch in the playoffs limelight but the long season grind wears on the Vets more than the hungry young players. 

They're not 50 year olds playing 162. I can flip that around and say young players have less experience playing such a long season. For rookies it might be the most they've ever played. I think a guy like Durbin would be less energetic at the end of his first season on a losing team than he would be in a playoff atmosphere. Again, while there may be some players who this is true for, it's not a very good reason to trade for someone. Or to replace a player already on the squad for that matter. 

Overall could see the value in playoff experience if the team was full of players with none at all. The Brewers are not one of those teams.

[Brian]

1 hour ago, Thurston Fluff said:

They're not 50 year olds playing 162. I can flip that around and say young players have less experience playing such a long season. For rookies it might be the most they've ever played. I think a guy like Durbin would be less energetic at the end of his first season on a losing team than he would be in a playoff atmosphere. Again, while there may be some players who this is true for, it's not a very good reason to trade for someone. Or to replace a player already on the squad for that matter. 

Overall could see the value in playoff experience if the team was full of players with none at all. The Brewers are not one of those teams.

Tell that to Giannis then, NBA only plays 82 games in a season and its not 90 degrees on the court, play about 3-4 games per week and an NBA game is over in 2 hrs.  There rested on and off throughout the season. 

Teams trade players for only a few reasons, salary, younger talented prospects for the future, injuries, replacement for a positional weakness. 

[Team Canada]

42 minutes ago, Brian said:

Tell that to Giannis then, NBA only plays 82 games in a season and its not 90 degrees on the court, play about 3-4 games per week and an NBA game is over in 2 hrs.  There rested on and off throughout the season. 

Comparing baseball to basketball is like apples and bowling balls. The physical toll a basketball takes is completely different than a baseball game.

[Thurston Fluff]

1 hour ago, Brian said:

Teams trade players for only a few reasons, salary, younger talented prospects for the future, injuries, replacement for a positional weakness. 

Apparently you agree teams don't trade for playoff experience. So, why the thumbs down?

[Brian]

2 hours ago, Thurston Fluff said:

Apparently you agree teams don't trade for playoff experience. So, why the thumbs down?

I completely disagree with that comment above.

Yes, teams do trade for players to fill there weakest spots but  it does not have to be a player with playoff experience. Best man for the job for your needs that you can afford.