Projecting the Brewers’ 2026 NLDS Roster: Pitching Plan and Final 26th-Man Battle

[Jake McKibbin]

Image courtesy of Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

The Brewers have qualified for the playoffs in eight of the last nine seasons, and are once again sailing through September with one of baseball's best records. But the next two weeks aren't really about winning as many games as possible. They're about making sure the right 26 players are available (and properly positioned) when October begins.

Milwaukee can carry 26 players to the NLDS (or the Wild Card series, should they lose their grip on a bye through that round, but let's stay optimistic). Against the Cubs in 2025, the Brewers carried 12 pitchers and 14 position players, but there is a wrinkle in there. The schedule afforded an extra day of rest (between Games 1 and 2) during last year's series, meaning the Brewers only needed three traditional starters, and they used that opportunity to bring an extra positional player for versatility in match-ups and defensive coverage,

This season, the Brewers will need four starting pitchers, unless they pitch on shorter rest (which is unlikely), so we should anticipate an even split of 13 position players and 13 pitchers.

Position Players (13)
This appears to be one of the easier position player groups to predict going into October in recent memory. Last season, we wondered if Garrett Mitchell would return on time. There was also the Jesse Winker curveball in 2023. No such dilemmas loom right now. Barring injury, the players should look something like:

• Catcher: William Contreras, Gary Sánchez
• First Base: Jake Bauers, Andrew Vaughn
• Second Base: Brice Turang
• Shortstop: Cooper Pratt
• Third Base: Joey Ortiz, David Hamilton
• Outfield: Jackson Chourio, Garrett Mitchell, Luis Lara, Sal Frelick
• Designated Hitter: Christian Yelich

Any deviation from that would be a major surprise. Hamilton is unlikely to be starting games unless a particularly strong match-up presents itself, but his pinch-running and defensive versatility would be assets off the bench. Against a left-handed starter, Bauers's ability to play the outfield gives Pat Murphy another way to get Contreras, Vaughn and potentially Sánchez into the same lineup without sacrificing defensive flexibility. Alternatively, they might lean toward Luis Lara and the premium defensive outfield corps they now have with Mitchell and Chourio—more so with the volume of fly ball pitchers they have lined up to start games.

With this group, the Brewers have versatility, pinch-hitting thump and defensive quality that will allow them to adapt to any game situation as and when required.

Pitchers (12)
Now, we come to something a little less concrete, but the Brewers made a move this week to suggest an answer to at least one question. They now have Jacob Misiorowski, Logan Henderson and Dustin May lined up as the first three pieces of their potential NLDS rotation.

The Brewers' decision to move May to Friday is particularly interesting, because it lines him up behind Misiorowski and Henderson. That looks like an attempt to establish the order they want to use in a potential NLDS. It isn't definitive evidence of the playoff rotation, but it is the clearest clue we've been given.

They did not do this for Robert Gasser, which leads me to think the starting pitching plan is to go for the above as starters (with a shorter leash for May) and a bullpen game in Game 4 that features a long relief arm, similar to how Misiorowski was used in 2025. 

Gasser's performance of late, especially the first time through an order, deserves this spot, but it could be matchup dependant: he has an .800 opponents' OPS this season when facing right-handed hitters, compared to a .577 against lefties. That split makes Gasser particularly interesting as a bulk option, rather than an automatic Game 4 starter. If Milwaukee can deploy him against a lineup pocket that leans left-handed, his recent form becomes much more attractive. Either way, he should pitch multiple innings in that game.

In short, the Brewers' biggest postseason roster decision may not be who makes the team, but how they distribute innings.

It should look something like this:

• Game 1: Jacob Misiorowski
• Game 2: Logan Henderson
• Game 3: Dustin May
• Game 4: Robert Gasser

Then:

• Right-Handed Matchup Relief: Antonio Senzatela
• Right-Handed Matchup Relief: Chad Patrick
• Left-Handed Matchup Relief: JoJo Romero
• Left-Handed Matchup Relief: DL Hall
• Left-Handed Matchup Relief: Shane Drohan
• Jack of All Trades: Aaron Ashby
• Set-up: Abner Uribe
• Closer: Trevor Megill

Senzatela has given up a lot of hard contact since joining the Brewers, but he and Patrick are strong middle-relief arms to go to against a right-handed pocket of hitters the likes of which the Chicago Cubs field regularly. 

Ashby is probably the most uncomfortable name on this list, but he's also one of the hardest to leave off. The stuff plays in October, and Murphy has already demonstrated that he isn't afraid to use Ashby outside of traditional bullpen roles or inning assignments. The upside still outweighs the downside, but Milwaukee has to avoid giving hitters too many looks at him throughout the series. It has to be quality, not quantity, for Ashby in 2026.

As for Uribe and Megill, there's no question how the game looks if the Brewers have a lead through seven innings.

The 26th man
You'll notice that I've only mentioned 12 pitchers. The last spot is most likely to go to Grant Anderson, an uncomfortable at-bat for right-handers, but he's faced some problems with left-handed hitters this year and would be a great place for a manager to bring left-handed bats off the bench. Anderson would be a strong weapon for a trio such as Seiya Suzuki, Alex Bregman and Tyrone Taylor, for instance—but pinch-hit specialist Michael Conforto could thwart even a well-made plan if Anderson is trapped in the game by the three-batter minimum rule.

Alternatively, they could bring a third catcher in Bo Naylor. This allows for more liberal, aggressive use of Sánchez as a bench bat or even a starting option against left-handers, filling the DH spot. That would allow the Brewers to put Vaughn, Contreras, Bauers and Sánchez into the same line-up against a southpaw starter—something that will be tempting against teams like the Phillies, who have Jesús Luzardo and Cristopher Sánchez leading their rotation.

One of their wild card arms is more likely, of course. It's unlikely that Brandon Woodruff is ready to go in the playoffs, especially the NLDS, but who knows. Then you have a unique arm like Coleman Crow, who could expose hitters with susceptibility to spin or breaking pitches. Perhaps Kyle Harrison rediscovers his confidence and command out of the bullpen, to the point where the Brewers trust him in the postseason.

The only spot I'm genuinely undecided on is the 26th man, but Anderson gets the nod because his ability to attack right-handed pockets gives Murphy another matchup weapon without forcing a major change to the pitching plan. All in all, the postseason roster should look like this:

Would you agree? Or would you go in a different direction? let us know your thoughts in the comments below!

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[long ball]

I think you’re spot on with everything here. 
 

we did only carry 12 pitchers last year in the playoffs, even in the nlcs. 
 

If we go with 14 position players, I’d lean toward Lockridge. I feel like he adds at least 1 elite skill (speed) while Naylor is really only useful as an emergency catcher. 

[Brewcrew82]

Bo Naylor.

Does Lockridge give you anything that you can't get from other players on the roster? While Naylor allows you to more liberally utilize and substitute for Contreras and Sanchez, which is quite valuable given the quality of their bats and their relative lack of speed.

[Jake McKibbin]

7 minutes ago, Brewcrew82 said:

Bo Naylor.

Does Lockridge give you anything that you can't get from other players on the roster? While Naylor allows you to more liberally utilize and substitute for Contreras and Sanchez, which is quite valuable given the quality of their bats and their relative lack of speed.

I think that's it. In a nutshell, Lockridges speed gives you more use and he's more likely to appear in game for that alone

That being said, Naylor's value comes from a freedom to use Sanchez as a PH whenever you like, there's always that fear if a catcher goes down what happens. Then again william Contreras is:

[wiguy94]

29 minutes ago, Jake McKibbin said:

I think that's it. In a nutshell, Lockridges speed gives you more use and he's more likely to appear in game for that alone

That being said, Naylor's value comes from a freedom to use Sanchez as a PH whenever you like, there's always that fear if a catcher goes down what happens. Then again william Contreras is:

I think Lockridge has very little value when you actually look at the roster. The only guys on the roster you would actually pinch run for are Contreras, Gary, and Vaughn. The only way you’re pinch running for Contreras is if it’s very late in a close game. Sanchez and Vaughn are both likely to be on the bench against RHP. There really isn’t much use for Lockridge as a pinch runner especially when you’d probably prefer to use Hamilton as your top priority pinch runner.