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Second-half surge has Brewers in position for their earliest clinching date in franchise history, by far


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For those who haven’t paid close attention, the Milwaukee Brewers’ magic number has been shrinking more rapidly than a cheap cotton T-shirt in an unattended dryer.

When the Brewers finished off a three-game sweep of Cleveland with an 11-1 romp Sunday afternoon and the foundering Cincinnati Reds fell in St. Louis, 2-0, Milwaukee’s magic number suddenly was down to five. Both teams were off Monday, so that will remain the number to clinch the NL Central when the Brewers open a two-game series Tuesday in Detroit.

Barring something unforeseen, the Brewers are on track to clinch a postseason berth at the earliest stage of a season in franchise history, by far. Of their previous seven appearances in the playoffs, the biggest cushion they had came in 2011, when that club sealed the NL Central crown on Sept. 23, with five games remaining in the season.

The Brewers have surged to a 14-game lead in the division by clicking off victories at a furious pace since the all-star break. They have won 14 of 17 series played during that time, going 36-16, a .692 winning percentage. Winners of five in a row, the Brewers are 11-3 since Aug. 28, when they held a 7½-game lead over the Reds.

Despite the largest division lead in the majors, rightfielder Avisaíl García insisted the Brewers are taking nothing for granted.

“Everybody knows that we have a big lead in the Central but for us, it’s not enough,” he said. “The job is not complete yet. We have to compete every single game because every game counts.

“We have a big responsibility, so we have to keep going, stay focused and just play good baseball.”

The 2011 Brewers, who had the previous high-water mark in terms of division leads at 10½ games that September, went on to win 96 games, a franchise record. That victory total was matched in 2018, but the Brewers had to play an extra game, No. 163 against the Cubs, to do it.

This Brewers team has obliterated many of the franchise’s high-water marks with more likely to come. Being 34 games over .500 is a new stratosphere. They have won 49 games on the road, already a franchise mark, with eight games still to play away from American Family Field.

Beyond the incredible lead in the division, the Brewers are on pace to win 100 games. Winning 97 would be a franchise record, so stay tuned.

As for accomplishing the team motto of “stacking up wins,” second baseman Kolten Wong said, “That’s what this team’s been doing the whole season. Doesn’t matter who’s in the lineup or what the lineup looks like. Guys just perform, day in and day out. It’s fun to be a part of.

“There’s no egos on this team, so if you see something, you can go and tell somebody. We’re just trying to get better collectively, continue to build and be ready for the playoffs. We want to make a long push and hopefully go to the World Series. We all know what the goal is.”

With that in mind, and with that magic number now counted on one hand, here’s a look at the Brewers’ previous seven playoff clinchers, in chronological order:

1981

Oct. 3 vs. Detroit Tigers

There was no way to know at the outset, but this would be a split season because of a labor dispute that prompted players to walk out after games of June 11. At the time, the Brewers were 31-25, in third place in the AL East, three games behind the New York Yankees.

When play resumed two months later, the decision had been made to split the season in half, in terms of playoff eligibility. With New York declared the first-half champ in the East, the second half became a close battle with the Brewers, Red Sox, Tigers and Orioles keeping pace.

The Brewers finished the season with a three-game series at home against Detroit, and an 8-2 romp in the opener gave them a one-game lead with two to play. The Tigers sent ace Jack Morris to the mound in the second game and the Brewers countered with Pete Vuckovich, with Detroit taking a 1-0 lead into the eighth inning.

Milwaukee manufactured a two-run rally, with some bunts, walks and a decisive sacrifice fly by Gorman Thomas, and Rollie Fingers recorded the final four outs to clinch the second-half title and give the Brewers their first playoff berth. They were eliminated in five games by the Yankees in the first divisional series.

1982

Oct. 3 at Baltimore

When the Brewers claimed a dramatic 6-3 victory in Boston on Sept. 29 on a three-run homer in the ninth by backup catcher Ned Yost, it gave them a four-game lead in the AL East with five to play. What could go wrong?

Well, four losses in a row is what went wrong, including the first three of a closing four-game series in Baltimore, allowing the Orioles to pull into a first-place tie with Milwaukee, setting up a sudden-death game in the season finale at Memorial Stadium.

With late-season pickup Don Sutton out-pitching Orioles ace Jim Palmer, Robin Yount slugging two homers and Ben Oglivie making a game-turning, sliding catch in the left-field corner, the Brewers rolled to a 10-2 victory that avoided what would have been a devastating collapse. They climbed out of a 0-2 hole in the best-of-five ALCS against California and went on to their only World Series appearance, losing to St. Louis in seven games.

2008

Sept. 28 vs. Chicago Cubs

The Brewers finally snapped a 26-year playoff drought, but it certainly didn’t come easily. An early September slide led to the dismissal of Yost, then the team’s manager, with hitting coach Dale Sveum taking over. There were 12 games remaining, and Milwaukee went 6-5 over the first 11, taking them into the season finale against the Cubs at then-Miller Park while in a tie with the New York Mets for the wild-card berth (there was just one then).

Mid-season acquisition CC Sabathia, who put the team on his broad shoulders, took the mound and again pitched brilliantly on short rest with a complete-game four-hitter. Already having clinched the division, the Cubs went with a bullpen game and the score was tied, 1-1, when Ryan Braun smacked a two-run, two-out homer off Bob Howry in the eighth.

The Brewers and their fans had to wait afterward for the result in New York to see if there would be a one-game playoff or a celebration. When the Florida Marlins pulled out a 4-2 victory over the Mets, it was party time in Milwaukee.

2011

Sept. 23 vs. Florida Marlins

The Brewers were just six games over .500 (49-43) at the all-star break, tied for first place, but took off in the second half to pull away from the pack for their first NL Central crown. From July 26 through Aug. 28, they went on a 27-5 spree, building a 10½-game lead, the biggest in franchise history until this season.

A five-game losing streak in early September allowed St. Louis to pull within six games, but the Brewers moved into clinching position as they prepared to play the Marlins at home on the 23rd. It was shades of 2008 as Braun again came through with a dramatic three-run homer in the eighth to send Milwaukee to a 4-1 victory.

Similar to how things shook out three years earlier, the Brewers and their fans sat tight and waited for the Cubs to topple the Cardinals, 5-1, 20 minutes later to clinch the title and set off another celebration. Alas, it would be St. Louis that knocked off the Brewers in six games in the NLCS and prevented a second trip to the World Series.

2018

Sept. 26 at St. Louis

The Brewers were five games behind the first-place Cubs on Labor Day when they began a furious September surge, resulting in a 20-7 record over the final month. Manager Craig Counsell, who played on the ’08 and ’11 playoff teams, took advantage of expanded rosters to “bullpen” as many games as possible, allowing Milwaukee to pull out many late victories.

The bullpen came through again on Sept. 26 at Busch Stadium, with Jeremy Jeffress recording the final four outs of a 2-1 victory that clinched at least a wild-card berth. But the Brewers had bigger things on their mind – catching the Cubs, if possible, as they entered a closing three-game interleague series against Detroit at home.

By sweeping the Tigers and extending their winning streak to seven games, the Brewers pulled into a first-place tie with the Cubs, forcing a game No. 163 showdown at Wrigley Field for the division crown. In one of the most glorious days in franchise history, the Brewers got another strong start from Jhoulys Chacín and held on for a 3-1 victory.

Chicago would be eliminated in the wild-card game at home against Colorado and the Brewers stretched their winning streak to 12 games, eventually advancing to Game 7 of the NLCS before bowing to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

2019

Sept. 25 at Cincinnati

The Brewers mounted another September surge to come from far off the pace (7½ games out on Sept. 5) and get into the thick of the playoff race. They hit the road for a closing trip to Cincinnati and Colorado, clinching at least a wild-card berth with a 9-2 romp in the second game against the Reds.

With four games remaining, the Brewers still had a chance to catch the Cardinals for the division title. But, after finishing off a sweep in Cincy, they lost all three games at Coors Field (there still was an opportunity to tie for first entering the final day), allowing St. Louis to claim the NL Central by two games.

After all that hard work, the Brewers went to Washington for the wild-card game and lost a heartbreaker as the Nationals scored three runs in the eighth for a 4-3 victory en route to their first World Series crown.

2020

Sept. 27 at St. Louis

The playoffs are the playoffs but as far as clinchers go, this was hardly a shining moment in franchise history. In a pandemic-shortened, 60-game season, with the postseason expanded from 10 to 16 teams and an added incentive to make it to the end, the Brewers never got hot, mainly because of an offense that had trouble generating runs.

With so many other teams having similar problems, the Brewers managed to stay in the playoff race despite not posting a winning record for even one day. They finished with five games in St. Louis, including a makeup doubleheader resulting from a COVID outbreak among the Cardinals at the start of the season.

Behind a brilliant pitching performance from Brandon Woodruff, the Brewers won the penultimate game, 3-0, leaving them needing a victory in the season finale to clinch the eighth and final playoff spot in the NL. Milwaukee lost that game, 5-2, as St. Louis claimed the No. 5 playoff berth, but the Brewers got in anyway when San Francisco lost later in the day to San Diego, closing its season with three consecutive losses.

The Brewers and Giants both finished 29-31 but Milwaukee had the tiebreaker on divisional play. The fourth-place Brewers became only the second team with a losing record to make the postseason – Houston did likewise in the AL – and were promptly eliminated in two games by the eventual champion Dodgers.

To put it mildly, this year’s Brewers are playing at a completely different level, with high expectations for what could happen in October.

“We’ve done a lot of impressive things as a team, as a whole,” said Corbin Burnes, who pitched the first eight innings of a no-hitter Saturday night in Cleveland. “We’re playing our best baseball as we’ve come into September and I think we’re only going to get better.

“We have a few guys banged up right now, but we’ll get them some extra days (of rest) and be even better in the postseason. It’s an exciting time in the organization, for sure. We’re fired up. We’re excited to play every day and we don’t feel like there’s any game we can’t win.”