Brewers have a lot to be proud of

On August 20^th, the Milwaukee Brewers were coming off a 2 game losing streak following an 8-0 loss at home to the Phillies.  They were set to play the Cubs that evening, and little did they (or us, for that matter) know that would be the start of a 24-6 run that would bring the Brewers from 12.5 back of the 2^nd Wild Card spot to within 1.5 games. The Brewers were doing it all; pitching, defense, and offense. It was a great run, and for a while had the fan base invigorated with playoff fever. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be and the Brewers were finally eliminated from playoff contention after Sunday’s 7-0 defeat at the hands of the lowly Astros. A disappointing end to the season, no doubt.

I could look back, play the “what-if” game, and wonder where the Brewers would be had the bullpen not blown so many games, but I’m not going to do that. I’m going take the glass half full approach and look at a team that never quit and will have a lot of promise moving forward.

After taking so many blows to the gut from the bullpen all season, I’m mightily impressed that this team was able to put together a great run and finish over .500 for the 2^nd consecutive season. Just how impressive is that? Well, the bullpen lost an MLB-leading 32 games this season. The fact that the Brewers still managed an above .500 record with this bullpen speaks volumes to how the offense, defense, and starting pitching performed all year long.

The offense this year was incredibly fun to watch. The Brewers led the NL in runs, home runs, and stolen bases. The speed/power combo is something rarely seen these days; the Colorado Rockies were the last team to lead the league in home runs and stolen bases back in 1996. This offensive outburst this season looks even more remarkable considering the fact that Milwaukee lost their starting shortstop, Alex Gonzalez, and starting first baseman, Mat Gamel, to season-ending injuries the first week of May. In all honesty though, the Gamel injury might have actually helped. It allowed the Brewers to move Corey Hart to first where he looks like a natural (his defense has been top-notch) and it cemented Norichika Aoki as the every day right fielder. Even Jonathan Lucroy was lost for a couple months after breaking his hand.

Of course, those weren’t the only losses this season as Chris Narveson was lost for the season in April, Shaun Marcum was on the DL for a majority of the season, and Zack Greinke was traded in July when the Brewers fell out of the race. How were the Brewers able to overcome this? Look no further than young arms (and Marco Estrada). Mike Fiers, Wily Peralta, Tyler Thornburg and Estrada performed unbelievably well this season considering all, except Estrada, were rookies. If any of these players can pitch remotely like they did this year, then the Brewers will have a lot to smile about in the coming years.

After all the injuries and poor performances from the pen, it’s remarkable what this team was able to accomplish. The Brewers might have fallen short of the postseason, but this was not a bad team by any stretch of the imagination. With an owner who is willing to spend money, there is no reason to think that the Brewers can’t find a few pieces here and there to improve the team heading into next year. I fully expect the Brewers to compete next year and I can’t wait until opening day.