The Brewers Have Everything They Need to Win It All

Image courtesy of Michael McLoone-Imagn Images

Brewers Video

Despite playing in the smallest market in baseball, the Milwaukee Brewers have assembled a championship-caliber roster. That was evident earlier this week when they hosted the Chicago Cubs for a three-game series. Not only did Milwaukee sweep its division rivals (who are also looking to make a deep postseason run), but the Brewers never wavered when things got tight. Two of the three games were decided in the eighth inning or later, including an extra-inning win. Those are the types of games where the best teams in baseball find a way to get it done, and Milwaukee did exactly that. At this point, it’s difficult to argue that the Brewers aren’t one of those teams. The team has done their best to obliterate any lingering doubts, too, with a two-day barrage at the expense of the Reds since the Cubs left town.

Milwaukee currently owns the best record in baseball. Of course, having the best record in baseball doesn’t automatically mean a team is built for October. Plenty of regular-season juggernauts have fallen short once the postseason began. But when looking at this Brewers roster from top to bottom, it’s hard not to see a team that has everything it needs to go out and win a World Series.

The Misiorowski (and Co.) Factor

Even in last year’s NLCS, when the Brewers were swept by the Dodgers, Milwaukee allowed just 15 combined runs over four games against the best offense in baseball. The problem was that the Brewers were held to just four total runs themselves. That was last year, though, and I’d argue Milwaukee’s pitching staff has done nothing but improve since then.

Obviously, Jacob Misiorowski can shut down any lineup on any given night. He’s the heavy favorite for the NL Cy Young Award, and rightfully so. The right-hander has allowed more than three earned runs in a game just once all season. That’s an absurd level of consistency from a pitcher who has quickly established himself as arguably the most dominant arm in the league. And it doesn’t stop there.

Logan Henderson has broken out as a rookie, giving the Brewers another potential frontline starter heading into October. If Kyle Harrison can get back on track, the trio of Misiorowski, Henderson and Harrison could give Pat Murphy a filthy rotation to work with when the postseason arrives. From there, Murphy has options. Shane Drohan, Dustin May and Robert Gasser can all be deployed depending on the matchup, the series situation and how the rotation lines up. Having that kind of depth gives Milwaukee something that becomes incredibly valuable in October: flexibility.

Meanwhile, the bullpen keeps humming along. Trevor Megill, Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby, Chad Patrick and JoJo Romero give Murphy a collection of arms he can use in different situations and against different portions of opposing lineups. He doesn’t need one guy to dominate every time a game gets to the late innings. He can play the matchups. Overall, this pitching staff has been lights out all season, and until we see otherwise, there’s no reason to believe October will be any different.

A Different Kind of Lineup Danger

Of course, pitching alone isn’t going to win Milwaukee a championship. The Brewers also have the lineup necessary to give their pitchers leads to work with; that was on full display against the Cubs earlier this week. Jackson Chourio was a nightmare for Chicago throughout the series, and that's carried right into the weekend. Brice Turang has rediscovered his form, as he recovers from a knee injury he played through for a while. William Contreras and Garrett Mitchell are the wild cards of this lineup, and they're getting hot at the right time. Jake Bauers has become a left-handed slugger so reliable it's easy to take him for granted.

Last year, however, the Brewers found out the hard way that the regular season and postseason are two very different animals. They were held to just one run in each of their four NLCS games against the Dodgers, and that ultimately ended what had been a tremendous season. If Milwaukee is going to get over the hump this time around, it’s going to be the bats that have to step up and get it done. The pitching staff has already shown it can keep a championship-caliber offense in check. Now, the lineup needs to prove it can produce when the margin for error gets as small as it does in October. That’s the biggest question hanging over this team.

There’s a reason the Brewers have the best record in baseball. They’ve been one of the most complete teams in the league all season; they have enough pitching to survive a postseason series and a lineup capable of putting crooked numbers on the board when things start clicking. More importantly, this is a team that already knows what it feels like to come up short.

After getting swept in the NLCS last October, Milwaukee has spent the entire 2026 season putting themselves in position to have another shot. Now, with the best record in baseball and a roster that looks even more complete than it did a year ago, the Brewers are running out of excuses. They're running out of ways to lose playoff series. It's time to win some and make this the year.