The Milwaukee Brewers dispatched the Tampa Bay Rays and capped a dominant run through the postseason with a 4-1 victory at Tropicana Field in Game 5 of the World Series, cementing the first title in the franchise’s 57-year history, according to ESPN. They were deemed too young and unheralded, dismissed as punchless and inexpensive, defined more by what they lacked than what they possessed. They won 103 regular-season games, the most in Major League Baseball for a second straight year — and now, for the first time, they warrant a different label: champions.
A clincher built on pitching and nerve
The clincher was set up by Jacob Misiorowski hurling triple-digit fastballs and suffocating Rays hitters through five scoreless innings, during which he recorded two strikeouts but also allowed just four baserunners. When the Brewers won the pennant, they sprayed champagne bottles with the names of former players who appeared in postseason games for the franchise. Rookie Cooper Pratt became the first player since David Ortiz in 2013 to record a hit in six straight World Series at-bats and the second rookie with seven RBIs in the final round. World Series MVP William Contreras batted .381 (8-for-21), threw out four of nine would-be base stealers and guided Milwaukee’s pitching staff to a dominant 2.13 ERA, according to Baseball Almanac.
A small-market triumph
A Brewers team that carried baseball’s 19th-highest payroll, ranked 28th in home runs and was widely viewed as the type of club that could not thrive this time of year went 11-2 in the playoffs, surviving a tension-filled National League Division Series against San Diego before overwhelming the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Championship Series. The series scores tell the story: Milwaukee won Game 1 3-2 and Game 2 5-4, lost Game 3 10-1 and Game 4 4-3 in 12 innings, then won Game 5 4-1. The celebrations continue in Wisconsin — and with free agency open and a December 1 labour deadline looming, the business of baseball has already moved on.
From celebration to business
The Brewers’ celebrations will last for days in Milwaukee, but baseball’s calendar waits for no one. Free agency is open, qualifying-offer decisions loom — Jake Bauers is seen as the Brewers’ leading candidate after hitting .266 with 26 home runs in 144 games — and the December 1 labour deadline threatens a lockout that could freeze transactions and cancel the Winter Meetings. Champions must defend their title in a sport that never stands still. For now, though, Milwaukee can simply enjoy being champions for the first time.
