Brewers ‘feel like we’ve got a lot of talent here’
MILWAUKEE — Christian Yelich and the Brewers think they’re just getting started. Sure looks that way, too. Led by breakout performances by Yelich, Josh Hader and Jesus Aguilar, Milwaukee chased down the Cubs to win the NL Central for the first time since 2011. The youthful Brewers then swept Colorado in the Division Series before taking the Dodgers all the way to Game 7 in the NL Championship Series.
The playoff run ended with a 5-1 loss to the more seasoned Dodgers on Saturday night, but the Brewers plan on returning to October very soon.
“We feel like we’ve got a lot of talent here,” Yelich said. “Hopefully, it’s just the beginning.”
Yelich, 26, nearly won the Triple Crown in his first season with Milwaukee after he was acquired in a trade with Miami in January. The silky-smooth outfielder is the leading candidate for his first NL MVP award.
Aguilar cruised past his previous career highs with 35 homers and 108 RBIs, and Hader set a major-league record for a left-handed reliever with 143 strikeouts in 811⁄3 innings. Throw in center fielder Lorenzo Cain and key arms Jeremy Jeffress and Corey Knebel, and Milwaukee is ideally positioned to make consecutive playoff appearances for the second time in franchise history.
“What these guys accomplished, it’s something I hope every one of these guys doesn’t forget,” said catcher Erik Kratz, who came to the Brewers in a May 25 trade with the Yankees.
“We made it to Game 7, and that can be a positive. Hopefully, they don’t stop there. Hopefully, Yeli doesn’t stop with one MVP award. Hopefully, LoCain doesn’t stop with one Gold Glove. I think the game allows everybody to either be content with what happened, or try to build on it. As a group here, these guys can’t do anything but build on it.”
After Milwaukee lost to St. Louis in the 2011 NLCS, the Brewers slipped to 83-79 the following year, then 74-88 in 2013. They finally made it back to the playoffs this year.
So don’t expect manager Craig Counsell, who played for the 2011 team and grew up in Milwaukee, to take anything for granted.
“That’s going to be what we spend a lot of time talking about next year, probably, is sustaining this,” he said. “But we feel like that’s at the forefront of all of our decisions is how do we build something that we can sustain.”
Some of Milwaukee’s biggest decisions heading into next season have to do with pitching. Rookie right-hander Freddy Peralta showed promise in his 14 starts, and St. Mary’s alum Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff became versatile options out of the bullpen after they were highly regarded starters in the minors.
The Brewers could use Peralta, Burnes and Woodruff to strengthen their rotation next year, or they could be options for Counsell if he tries more of the bullpen-oriented approach he employed in the playoffs. Jimmy Nelson, who missed the season after shoulder surgery in September 2017, could be a rotation option.
It’s also unclear what might happen with third baseman Mike Moustakas after he came to Milwaukee in a July trade with Kansas City and provided leadership for the Brewers in the playoffs. Moustakas, 30, was looking for a multiyear deal last winter before returning to the Royals on a $6.5 million, one-year contract that included a mutual option for 2019.
“All that stuff in the offseason, I’m not going to think about that for a while,” Moustakas said after the loss in Game 7. “I’m going to soak this in, being in this clubhouse this last time this season and hanging out with these guys.”