Following the most successful regular season in Brewers franchise history, Milwaukee enjoyed the fruits of their labor with a bye in the Wild Card round to begin the 2026 MLB Playoffs. That luxury was short-lived as their record reset to 0-0, and they turned their sights to the National League Division Series matchup with the San Diego Padres.
This won't be an easy time to face the Padres either, as they carry momentum from a dominant end to the regular season, in which they won 17 of 20 games. It served them well against the Cubs in the Wild Card round, crushing Chicago in each of their first two outings by a margin of 12 runs to one.
To make matters more interesting, the Brewers only finished with losing records against seven teams this season, and had their lowest winning percentage (.333) against two of them: San Diego and Washington. However, four of their six matchups were decided by two or fewer runs, so most of these weren't runaway games, besides a six-run win by the Brewers at AmFam Field and a nine-run win by the Padres at Petco Park.
The crowd played a big role in San Diego's Game 2 Wild Card win, with a roaring stadium adding fuel to the fire of another Cubs meltdown. In theory, the Brewers could lose both road games and still win the series, but this is an opportunity for a statement series by Milwaukee that would strike fear into the rest of the playoff bracket.
The Padres held Milwaukee at bay in the regular season, but the Brewers have a chance to shape a new narrative in the NLDS.
This Padres team is clearly no laughing matter. With a skilled bullpen and some serious power at the plate, San Diego could be a deadly matchup if the Brewers let them get hot. But that's no reason to get worked up, as Milwaukee has a winning combination to take care of business.
Manager Pat Murphy and his coaching staff have been preparing this team for the path ahead and have already locked in Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson as starters for the first two games. These are two of the most productive pitchers in the league, with a combined record of 27-8, which is a 77 percent win rate.
Offensively, the Brewers have found a strong rhythm to end the regular season with a complete lineup, give or take lingering injury questions surrounding Joey Ortiz and Andrew Vaughn. The good news is, Vaughn was out sick and is reportedly feeling better, and Ortiz himself said he's ready to play in Game 1 and simply seems to be a bit banged up from the wear and tear of a 162-game season.
So in theory, the Brewers will be deploying a fully healthy lineup of position players, with a bullpen that can match what the Padres are cooking up. Although it's hard to say who will play and for how many innings, Milwaukee has a ton of talent to lean on against San Diego's deep batting order. Murphy is expected to deploy his pitchers very creatively during the course of the series to compensate for a lack of clarity among his starters.
The Brewers have what it takes to control the tempo of the game, keep the Padres on their toes, and force the issue to begin the NLDS. But if they're able to overcome a team that did real damage to them in the regular season, it'll free them up to carry confidence and momentum of their own into the Championship Series. There's a lot of work to be done first, but these Brewers have what it takes to get there.
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