Small market, big power: How the Brewers are slugging their way to the top
-
Jesse Rogers, ESPN Staff Writer
MILWAUKEE — The Brewers lost their manager and best pitcher during the offseason. A step back would have felt understandable. Instead, two months into the season, Milwaukee is in a familiar place: atop the National League Central.
Replacing stars and reloading is nothing new for small-market teams such as the Brewers, but what is surprising is that Milwaukee returned to the top of the standings. Its offense ranked third in the National League in home runs entering Wednesday’s games, behind only the star-studded Los Angeles Dodgers.
Milwaukee’s explosive lineup has the attention of opponents used to prepping for the Brewers’ vaunted pitching staff.
“Their offense has been really, really good this year. They’re scoring a ton of runs and have a lot of guys performing at really high levels. Last year, they had great pitching and defense and they struggled to score runs,” Chicago Cubs president Jed Hoyer said. “This year, they’ve flipped the script and they’re really scoring runs. I give them credit for being resourceful.”
Craig Counsell leaving for the Cubs and ace Corbin Burnes‘ trade to the Baltimore Orioles dominated the headlines this winter, but the Brewers quietly upgraded their offense. Now, the moves are paying off.
First baseman Rhys Hoskins, who signed a two-year deal in late January, leads the team with nine home runs. Veteran catcher Gary Sanchez has six (and, so far, his best batting average since 2019) on a one-year deal. Joey Ortiz, acquired from the Orioles in the Burnes deal, and infielder Jake Bauers, another trade acquisition, have also contributed.
“We [acquired] guys for a reason,” GM Matt Arnold told ESPN this week. “Those guys have that kind of pedigree. We weren’t where we hoped to be in power last year.”
Arnold’s additions helped, but they alone didn’t take the Brewers from 25th in slugging last season to sixth in the majors this year.
In all, Milwaukee has eight players with five or more home runs, tied with Baltimore for most in MLB. That list includes holdovers Willy Adames (eight), William Contreras (eight) and Christian Yelich (five), as well as second-year players Blake Perkins (four) and Brice Turang (three), both with power increases since their rookie seasons.
The Brewers have been getting performance throughout their lineup rather than relying on one or two superstar sluggers for power.
“It’s a collective unit understanding you can pass the baton,” manager Pat Murphy said.
That collective unit has come in handy since Hoskins and Yelich have missed time. The Brewers have leaned on Contreras, who is developing into the type of player who can carry a lineup through tough stretches, making the leap from solid contributor to potential National League MVP candidate.
“I’m super impressed with William and what he’s doing,” Hoskins said. “You look at him and see power in him but he’s not a power hitter. He’s a really, really good hitter that accidentally hits home runs, which is always impressive.”
Contreras and his teammates’ focus on hitting for power without selling out for home runs is no coincidence: It’s the product of a philosophy instilled from the start of spring training.
“A lot of our data-driven talks were about what we do well, individually and as a team,” Hoskins said. “And how we can forge a plan or approach to what we do well and then power usually follows.”
It has led to a lineup that ranks in the top 10 in home run percentage, hard-hit rate and ISO power, helping turn a rebuilding year into a possible sixth postseason appearance in seven seasons.
“We’re trying to do both. It’s really tricky,” Arnold said. “We know our challenges being one of the smallest markets. “We’ve had a lot of success to this point but no one wants to sit here and put our feet up.”
If they keep hitting like they have, it’s hard to see the Brewers falling out of first place. Always expected to play good defense and pitch well, Milwaukee’s newfound power has one scout calling them “the little engine that could.” Hoskins, a longtime member of one of the sport’s big-market powers in Philadelphia, believes this version of the Brewers is built to go toe-to-toe with the NL’s heavyweights in October.
“The only surprise is we’re not the same type of market,” Hoskins said. “It’s a testament to pregame work, both physical and numbers driven. It’s putting us in a confident position.”
-
Jeff Passan, ESPN
The Washington Nationals demoted All-Star shortstop CJ Abrams to the minor leagues after he stayed out all night at a Chicago-area casino, leaving only hours before a Friday day game against the Chicago Cubs, sources told ESPN’s Jesse Rogers.
The 23-year-old Abrams led off for the Nationals and went 0 for 3 with a walk and strikeout in Friday’s game, which started at 1 p.m. CT. He was informed of the demotion Friday night, sources said. He will be sent to West Palm Beach, home of the Nationals’ minor league complex.
Because Abrams has been with Washington for the entirety of the season, the demotion will not affect his service time. Players earn a full year of service with 172 days on the major league roster, and Abrams already has exceeded that threshold.
Abrams could, however, file a grievance through the Major League Baseball Players Association to fight for lost pay if he believes the demotion unjust. He would lose around $30,000 of his $752,000 salary for missing the season’s final week. Abrams will be arbitration-eligible this winter, entering the system for the first of four times as a Super 2.
Acquired as one of the centerpieces of the Juan Soto trade two years ago, Abrams parlayed a breakout first-half into an All-Star selection, hitting .268/.343/.489 with 15 home runs and 15 stolen bases over the Nationals’ first 89 games. He struggled significantly in the second half, slashing .203/.260/.326, and Abrams’ defense has been a weakness throughout the season.
Still, the Nationals did not intend to send him to the minor leagues until they learned of his time spent at the casino, which was first reported Friday by CHGO.
“I just want it to be known it wasn’t performance-based,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez told reporters Saturday. “It’s an internal issue. I’m not going to give specifics.”
CLEMSON, S.C. — Clemson defensive end Peter Woods will not play for the 21st-ranked Tigers against NC State on Saturday because of a leg injury.
The team announced Woods’ status about 90 minutes before kickoff. Woods, 6-foot-3, 315 pounds, got hurt two weeks ago on a chop block below the knee in a 66-20 victory over App State. Woods came back in briefly after getting checked then missed the second half.
The Tigers were off last weekend.
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney has said Woods’ playing status was day-to-day. Swinney said Woods had not missed a practice. But Woods came out to the field for warmups in sneakers and sweatpants while other defensive linemen went through drills.
Woods leads the Tigers with 2½ tackles for loss.
Third-year sophomore Jahiem Lawson is listed as Woods’ backup on the depth chart.
NC State will be without starting quarterback Grayson McCall, who was hurt last week in a win over Louisiana Tech. Freshman CJ Bailey started for the Wolfpack.
-
Pete Thamel, ESPN
Utah quarterback Cam Rising is a game-time decision with an injury to his throwing hand, sources told ESPN, with the expectation that he will attempt to start.
No. 12 Utah plays at No. 14 Oklahoma State on Saturday, one of the biggest games of the season in the Big 12.
Rising has been limited in practice this week with the injury, and he is not expected to be 100% if he does play. He will be monitored closely to see how his injured fingers impact how he throws. The fingers play a huge role in both spin and velocity, which will impact his effectiveness in the passing game.
He injured his hand Sept. 7 against Baylor in the second quarter when he threw a ball away and was pushed out of bounds and landed awkwardly on the water coolers on the Bears sideline.
Rising warmed up with a glove on his hand before last week’s game against Utah State but did not play, and he was spotted with two fingers wrapped on the sideline against Baylor. It’s uncertain if he will use the glove on Saturday.
Utah’s offense plays a majority of its snaps under center and uses clapping as a mechanism in its snapping operation, which would both stress the fingers.
Backup quarterback Isaac Wilson is a true freshman who made his first career start against Utah State, going 20-of-33 passing for 239 yards and three touchdowns. He took first-team reps in practice this week when Rising wasn’t out there.
Wilson is the brother of former BYU quarterback Zach Wilson, who now plays in the NFL for the Denver Broncos.
Rising is a seventh-year senior who had emerged as one of the Pac-12’s top quarterbacks in 2021 and 2022. He has been snakebit by injuries in recent seasons, as an injury in the Rose Bowl following the 2022 season ultimately led to him missing the entire 2023 season.
-
Sports2 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports6 months agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports1 year agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports11 months agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Environment1 year agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Sports3 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Environment1 year agoTesla advances Powerwall pilot project with German electric company