This year's clubhouse...

[Trail]

I could be completely wrong on this, but watching the dugout on TV, this year's clubhouse doesn't seem as tight/ together/ happy or whatever adjective you'd like to use. Anyone else seeing this?  Or is this just a team that, while young, has been around the block a bit and knows the job in front of them; doesn't clown around as much as previous years?  It came to mind again last night when there seemed to be some conflict going on between Drohan and Contreras...looked to me like Sanchez came over and settled things down.  

[owbc]

2 hours ago, Trail said:

I could be completely wrong on this, but watching the dugout on TV, this year's clubhouse doesn't seem as tight/ together/ happy or whatever adjective you'd like to use. Anyone else seeing this?  Or is this just a team that, while young, has been around the block a bit and knows the job in front of them; doesn't clown around as much as previous years?  It came to mind again last night when there seemed to be some conflict going on between Drohan and Contreras...looked to me like Sanchez came over and settled things down.  

I think at least two things are going on...

1) Team clearly feeling pressure -- can't have the underdog mentality this year

2) Something up with Contreras. Not sure if it's just him feeling the pressure also or something else. 

Just watching the player mannerisms in San Diego it seemed like Sanchez was easily the loosest of the bunch. He was chatting it up with everyone. I'm glad we have him around. 

[tmwiese55]

I'd toss out that this year I've gotten the vibe that its more about business and the postseason, that it isn't about the regular season anymore. Like they're not gonna get all fired up about winning regular season games anymore. The kind of act like you've been there before type thing and some of the criticism they heard about treating beating the cubs like it was the WS.

Generally speaking, I'd say that isn't a good thing in such a long season and can lead to being too tense or putting pressure on yourself. And enjoying the ride is better for staying loose.   Who knows though, we just watch on TV

[BCF]

A lot of players are struggling this year. Turang, Jackson, Yelich, Contreras all clearly struggling 

Last year the offense was on fire and a lot of players were playing well 

[sveumrules]

1 minute ago, BCF said:

A lot of players are struggling this year. Turang, Jackson, Yelich, Contreras all clearly struggling 

Last year the offense was on fire and a lot of players were playing well 

Turang had a 124 wRC+ last year, and has a matching 124 wRC+ so far this year.

Chourio is at a 120 wRC+ so far this year compared to a 111 wRC+ last year.

Brice & Jackson might not be firing on all cylinders at peak form, but also don't think it's really fair to lump them in with Contreras (132 to 113 to 95 wRC+ last three years) or Yelich (154 to 121 to 89 wRC+ last three years) who are both on multi season benders.

[wildcat2237]

Freddy Peralta is now gone. Willy Adames also now two years removed. I think those were both big clubhouse guys, so that has affected things a bit. Also doesnt help that the Cubs have gotten hot at the wrong time and the Brewers have been injured/struggled a bit at the wrong time. If the team is stacking wins it is much easier to look like a tight knit family. 

[jw5511986]

I really think we should pay Bauers, within reason, if for no other reason than at some point we have to keep a strong voice in the locker room.

[OppoTaco]

Agreed on Bauers. It is refreshing to see an outspoken leader who is also backing his talk with his walk right now. His growth has really been a marvel this year, and a big reason why the Crew is still near the top of the league.

[Frisbee Slider]

We are missing Sal Frelick 

[baseball101]

4 hours ago, BCF said:

A lot of players are struggling this year. Turang, Jackson, Yelich, Contreras all clearly struggling 

Last year the offense was on fire and a lot of players were playing well 

What are all these comments based on? Yelich and Bill yes. Everything else is not accurate.

[Trail]

This isn't something I've just recently noticed.  To me anyway, its been there for a while.  Again...I could be all wet and its just a different locker room this year rather than a less-happy one. Something just seems not-right.  Hope I'm way off here....

[da swedish german]

.

[da swedish german]

3 hours ago, Trail said:

This isn't something I've just recently noticed.  To me anyway, its been there for a while.  Again...I could be all wet and its just a different locker room this year rather than a less-happy one. Something just seems not-right.  Hope I'm way off here....

I agree

a few weeks ago I gently provided my opinion that something is off about pat this year. and I think it could possibly be translating to the players.  he had his surgeries. he's old. had  recent health scares. has 7 year olds. he's tired.  I stopped sharing my opinions after the responses I received by the gatekeepers 

also, the ads on this site are a joke 

[Marc Newfield of Dreams]

1 hour ago, da swedish german said:

I agree

a few weeks ago I gently provided my opinion that something is off about pat this year. and I think it could possibly be translating to the players.  he had his surgeries. he's old. had  recent health scares. has 7 year olds. he's tired.  I stopped sharing my opinions after the responses I received by the gatekeepers 

also, the ads on this site are a joke 

Managing professionals like college kids will only work for so long, and it wouldn't surprise me if they start to tune it out. 

[rickh150]

Losing West coast games…….. must be clubhouse problems.  cubs winnng too much….must be issues o

[biedergb]

22 hours ago, sveumrules said:

Contreras (132 to 113 to 95 wRC+ last three years)

Wow. Last year his thumb injury explained the struggles and I have been all on board the extend Contreras since we don’t have a viable starting C (Quero is fine, and Dinges is years away from being a mlb catcher), but man we can replace 90 wRC+ with any internal options, and keep that money to extend another player somewhere. Catcher is a tough position and we git 2-3 of the best years from wild bill, but I also don’t think his next contract will age well (see Adames, D. Williams), and this years contract already feels like an overpay.

Dont get me wrong, he plays a premium position and is still good, but the catcher void I was worried about doesn’t seem as deep now.

Yelich - I’m not sure. Age and injuries really make him a part time player. I was always hoping he would play that ryan Braun role in his twilight years, but Braunie was much more productive in 2017-2019.  Yeli also isn’t that rag rah dugout guy Braunie was. Yeli will always have a place in my heart, but right now it just sucks that he and Woody accounted for 1/3 of the payroll and close to no production (ineffectiveness for Yeli, and injuries for woody).

[Jim French Stepstool]

23 hours ago, Frisbee Slider said:

We are missing Sal Frelick 

It's actually an interesting scenario. When he is deemed ready to return, I suppose the popular choice to go down would be Lockridge. That leaves you pretty overloaded on the LHH side in the OF which is where they were before, except the switch hitter (Lara) is an improvement over Perkins. I imagine you would then see a heavy dose of Bauers in RF vs LHP with Vaughn at 1B & Sanchez DHing.

I know there was some speculation about Lara going back to AAA but IMO that would be a mistake.

[Samurai Bucky]

This is a good discussion.  There are obviously a lot of things that make a clubhouse gel, or can cause some problems.

I saw something this morning that made me think about this.  There was a short video showing some of the actors and actresses that passed away this year.  They mentioned 2-3 that were from Venezuela and had died in the earthquakes.  I had no idea who they were.

I think William, Jackson, and Luis might.

On June 24, Venezuela was hit with a huge earthquake -- 7.2 on the Seismic Magnitude Scale (not sure if it is still called the Richter scale).  Many, many people died.  I'm not sure if any of their families were directly affected.  I know they were emotionally involved because they wore items on their equipment and mentioned it in their pressers.  With the help of the Milwaukee fanbase,  William Contreras and Jackson Chourio collected and shipped 27 tons of emergency supplies to Venezuela.  That was awesome!

For us in America, we did our part and we moved on.  That is what we do.  I'm not sure those with family and friends could just turn it off, nor should they.  Remember, they are humans playing baseball, not an avatar on some PS5 or XBOX One X game.

Before June 24 (inclusive):

Contreras:  .302 / .365 / .427 / .792 and wRC+ of 119
Chourio:  .296 / .346 / .524 / .870 and wRC+ of 137

After June 24:

Contreras:  .172 / .259 / .298 / .557 and a wRC+ of 55
Chourio:  .244 / .323 / .400 / .723 and a wRC+ of 97

Maybe the reason why I bring this up is because while I do struggle with players not playing up to their potential, I know they are people.  Before I get so mad about players not playing well, I remember that there are other things that could be affecting them.  Does that mean that Contreras suddenly is a bad player?  Of course not.  I believe that this event has affected William in a way none of us on this board can even begin to understand.

Has William been a key to a great clubhouse?  Most likely.  Is the clubhouse atmosphere suffering because he isn't his normal jovial self?  Probably.  Heck, he tried to kid around with a catcher and got fined $100K.  It wasn't malicious and probably a bad decision, but $100K?  ***?

I feel like the only thing I can do as a fan is to not spout any vitriol to them.  At no time have I seen them do something that was detrimental to the team from a human or teambuilding standpoint.  Contreras is trying to work through this personal event and we should support him, not buy the ticket for him to be on the next train to... wherever. 

¡Mantente fuerte, Venezuela!

[AKCheesehead]

Did Contreras actually get fined for that?

[Brian]

On 8/14/2026 at 10:57 AM, owbc said:

Something up with Contreras. Not sure if it's just him feeling the pressure also or something else. 

I think Contreras is just plain old Beat Up.  Between foul balls to the mask, back swings to the helmet, hand and wrist, while catching 100 mph fastballs in the heat of summer is just catching up with him. 

It wouldn't even surprise me if he has played with a mild concussion.  Cal Raleigh and J.T. Realmuto are both going threw it worse than William is. 

[Playing Catch]

I'm with those that just think the team is driven this season. They look calm and determined. A lot of these guys have been little more than kids in recent seasons, and they just look more mature. Even during their struggles I haven't noticed much, if any of throwing bats/helmets or what-have-you. Not that I've seen a lot of that from any Brewers over the last decade or so.

I thought it was telling early in the season when you realize that they don't do anything goofy on HRs or anything, including just mugging for the camera. And there was an early season series (I can't remember which one), were Yelich seemed particularly animated, in a competitive way, and I raised an eyebrow wondering if he and some of the other vets were trying to send a message to the youngsters a little bit.

I've also noticed some minor production issues with Brewers.TV this season, and wonder if their production team just isn't getting the right smiling faces on camera at the right time.

[Gump]

I think they are just locked in. Also we’re closing in on September. Nerves are always going to be a factor…. But, I think they are locked in. 

[TURBO]

Maybe the mastermind of the locker room's act is growing tired with the players.

Maybe the players question some of the mastermind's moves as much as we do.

Maybe not, but our two time manager of the year just might not be the master of his domain as much as he was the past couple of seasons,

*Excuse me while I reach into my pocket for a pancake*

[MadScientist]

7 hours ago, Gump said:

I think they are just locked in. Also we’re closing in on September. Nerves are always going to be a factor…. But, I think they are locked in. 

This is what I'm thinking.  They aren't focused just on winning a game or riding a winning streak, they want that ring and know they have a team that can do it.  Listening to Murphy, there is a higher level of expectations and accountability on this team.  Maybe this team isn't acting as goofy at times as last year, but they are focused, hungry and winning.  That's not a bad thing.

[long ball]

Obviously I have no idea what the clubhouse was like in the past or is like this year. 
 

We’ve heard the brewers have a “no ******* policy”. 
 

I haven’t necessarily noticed what you’ve noticed, but my theory would be that they’re not getting too high or too low during the regular season. They haven’t had the long winning streaks like last season. They haven’t been particularly “hot” either. They’ve just stayed incredibly consistent, winning 2/3 in a series 4-5 games a week. So they haven’t had the emotional highs and lows since they’ve just been consistently good all year. I’m sure svuem could tell us their best and worst stretches of the year, but it “feels” like there haven’t been any bad stretches and have only been a few “hot” streaks. 
 

just win.