The 2024 Brewers are Miraculously Great, But You Won't Hear About It
As of September 17th, the Milwaukee Brewers hold a 10-game lead over the Chicago Cubs for the NL Central. Yet, on the night before opening day, the Brewer’s odds for a division win sat at a slim +700 to begin the year. Yet with no major roster changes, the Brewers sit comfortably atop the NL Central and look to make a deep dent in the playoffs.
So how did a team that was heading for mediocrity after losing its headlining manager who left town for a division rival turn into a legitimate contender for a pennant? The short answer is somewhat simple: quantity over quality. Not by any means to say that the Brewer’s starters are low in quality, but to stress the idea that Milwaukee has built a contending team without any major superstars and instead put together a whole lot of solid talents. In fact, their main headliner and 2018 NL MVP Christian Yelich has been ruled out for the rest of the 2024 season after undergoing back surgery in August. Yelich’s replacement, rookie Jackson Chourio, will likely finish third in the NL Rookie of the Year Award after a fantastic 20-20 (20 stolen bases and 20 home runs) rookie campaign.
Milwaukee’s major star of the 2024 season has really been William Contreras. Contreras previously struggled at the catcher position with issues on defensive reliability and offensive consistency. This seemingly vanished as the Brewer’s coaching staff majorly helped grow the young Contreras into a blossoming star. In 2024, Contreras is batting .281 with a .364 OBP and has mashed 22 home runs while being a reliable battery mate for the vast majority of Milwaukee’s pitching staff. Despite losing their ace in 2021 Cy Young Award Winner Corbin Burnes, the Brewer’s pitching rotation has continued to improve and grow with steps taken from arms like Aaron Civale and Freddy Peralta. Rookie Tobias Myers came out of nowhere to also become a fantastic starter for the young Brewers with his 3.07 ERA in 126 innings. As someone who had struggled for the better part of two years in AAA, Myers' success and newfound consistency can be cited to the Brewer’s history with growing consistent and talented pitchers. In an August interview with MLB.com Myers said, “I knew this was a team that gives guys chances. They do a really good job with ‘no-name’ guys, just getting them to the big league level and getting some success under their belt.” Both Contreras and Myers are products of a Brewers major league coaching staff that knows exactly what they seek to do: build talent.
Tobias Meyers celebrates after a successful home outing
Take a quick look around the National League, and three teams stand out. The Philadelphia Phillies, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Milwaukee Brewers. The three leaders in each of their respective NL divisions, each of which holds over 87 wins and may be bound for near 100 overall wins, have one thing that separates them: money. The Dodgers are on the hook for over $350 million worth of salaries, which is good enough for second across the MLB and does not even include Shohei Ohtani’s deferred $70 million/per year contract. The Phillies will pay the MLB’s seventh-most in yearly payroll with a tab of $264 million for 2024. Yet, the Brewers are ranked 21st in payroll for 2024 and will only pay $140 million for their 2024 roster, headlined by a $12.5 million arbitration-based contract for shortstop Willy Adames. Now the Brewers aren't quite playing Moneyball, but it’s beyond worth noting that a team that finds talent by building and developing homegrown talent and other teams’ scraps while still being in the bottom third of MLB’s payroll pyramid continues to rack up regular season wins and division titles.
Brewers fans pack out American Family Field for Opening Day 2023
Maybe it’s Milwaukee’s “small market” or overall lack of headlining superstars, but the Brewers aren't getting anywhere near the recognition they deserve. Still, the Brewers 2024 has been full of surprising success and growth from a program that seemed to be headed for mediocrity. Whether the future holds a real deep playoff run for the Brew-Crew or just another division title and hopeful spirits for 2025, the flame of future promise continues to shine bright in Milwaukee.
