Looking Back At The Brewers' Hottest Starts In The Coldest Month

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Every Brewers fan dreams that the regular season begins on a high note. A fast start in the opening month is still a small sample size, but it sure can be exciting. Here is a look at some of the best month-long performances from March and April.

Best Team Hitting: .848 OPS in 1987

It is no surprise that the Brewers' best start to a season was in 1987. The famed 13-game winning streak was largely fueled by a historically good month offensively. Rob Deer paced Milwaukee with 9 home runs and a 1.215 OPS through April. Paul Molitor also produced a .395 batting average during the first 21 games.

Memorable moment: Dale Sveum's walk-off home run on Easter Sunday is iconic (43% WPA). The most pivotal moment of the game happened earlier in the inning, though, when Rob Deer smashed his second home run of the day, tying the score at 4-4 (48% WPA). 

Best Team Pitching: 2.27 ERA and .566 OPS allowed in 1976

Fifty years ago was certainly a different era for baseball. The 1976 Brewers pitching staff struck out only 44 batters in all of April. In fairness, Milwaukee played only 12 games that month. At the same time, that strikeout rate equates to an anemic 3.7 SO/9 IP, which was somehow not the worst in the league that month.

Jim Colborn, Jim Slaton, and Bill Travers did not miss many bats, but their batted balls allowed did not miss many gloves, either. The Brewers' pitching staff benefitted from a .226 BABIP that April, the lowest BABIP allowed over a single month in franchise history. All told, this team was Milwaukee's best at limiting earned runs, baserunners, and extra base hits over the first month of the season.

Memorable moment: Jim Slaton outduels Catfish Hunter as the Brewers beat the Yankees 5-0 on Opening Day. Hank Aaron records three RBI on the day for Milwaukee to begin his farewell season. 

Best Individual Hitting: 1.276 OPS by Eric Thames in 2017 (103 PA)

Eric Thames had a remarkable stint in the KBO League, averaging over 40 home runs per season before joining Milwaukee in November 2016. Thames did not miss a beat during his first month for the Brewers, hitting .345 wth 11 homers over 103 April plate appearances. Christian Yelich later went on to hit 14 HR in April 2019, but Thames still holds the team record for highest OPS for a season's opening month (minimum 90 PA).

Memorable moment: Eric Thames hits two home runs in the first two innings off Amir Garrett as the Brewers beat the Reds 11-7 on April 24 at Miller Park. Thames also recorded two walks and three runs scored on the evening.

Best Relief Pitching: .258 OPS allowed by Nick Mears in 2025 (11.1 IP)

Milwaukee has had historically good relief pitchers in recent memory. Surprisingly, the lowest OPS allowed in April by a Brewer reliever belongs to Nick Mears (minimum 10 IP). Mears struck out eight batters, allowed two walks, one earned run, and zero extra base hits to open the 2025 season. Mears was amazingly effective but not flashy. The flashiest start to a season by a Milwaukee reliever was Josh Hader in 2018. Hader struck out 39 batters over 18 innings that April. Only Tommy Pham's wall-scraping HR off Hader prevented Josh from earning the title of lowest OPS allowed to open a season.

Memorable moment: Nick Mears inherited two baserunners with nobody out in the bottom of the sixth inning on April 30 against the White Sox. Three pitches later, Mears recorded three outs and kept the game tied at 3-3. The average leverage index for Mears' appearance was a very high 2.62. If Milwaukee lost this game to Shane Smith, the damage to the Brewer Fanatic psyche would have been incalculable. 

Best Starting Pitching: .350 OPS allowed by Brandon Woodruff in 2021 (29 IP)

Milwaukee's big three starting pitchers of Brandon Woodruff, Corbin Burnes, and Freddy Peralta did not disappoint to start the 2021 season. Burnes recorded a major league record 58 strikeouts before issuing his first walk on May 13. However, the stingiest starting pitcher in franchise history in April is Brandon Woodruff. In April 2021, Woodruff allowed only one extra base hit over 29 IP.

Memorable moment: Brandon Woodruff throws seven scoreless innings, allowing just one hit against the Cubs at Wrigley Field on April 7. Lorenzo Cain hits his second home run of the game in the tenth inning, propelling Milwaukee to a 4-2 victory.

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