The Milwaukee Brewers' first World Series title meant the world to their loyal fans, and would have meant the world to the late, beloved broadcaster Bob Uecker.
Uecker was the Brewers’ radio broadcaster for 54 seasons, from 1971 to 2024, and became a Brewers legend. He died at age 90 in January 2025. Brewers captain Christian Yelich was particularly close to Uecker and offered a touching tribute after the team’s World Series victory.
"He’s smiling, man. I really wish he could have been here to see this," Yelich said. "It would have meant everything to him, but like we said a bunch, he’s been with us a lot. We keep him close to our hearts."
"He said, ‘Look, I helped you against the Padres and I messed with the Dodgers a little bit and then you came here and you’re on your own because we had a doubleheader and they actually let me catch the last three innings of the game.’"
Murphy was referring to the broadcaster’s time as a player, when Uecker was a catcher in the big leagues for six seasons, from 1962 to 1967.
"But you did it for the city, you did it for the state, and you boys ought to be awfully proud to know that you’re the first ever Milwaukee Brewer team to be World Champions."
The Milwaukee Brewers are 2026 World Series champions, bringing home the organization's first ever title. For the franchise and their fans, it was the culmination of years of quality scouting, drafting, international signings, player development, and remarkably successful trades.
It was also a near-perfect example of what it takes to win a championship in baseball.
While William Contreras won World Series MVP, voters had plenty of options to choose from on the Milwaukee roster. Jackson Chourio became the first player since Babe Ruth, yes, literally Babe Ruth, to have 10 hits in the first four games of a World Series. Cooper Pratt, a light-hitting, defense-first shortstop, set a rookie record with hits in six straight at bats from game four to game five.
Brice Turang hit .316, below average hitter David Hamilton crushed what looked like a huge home run in game four. Aaron Ashby went 5.2 innings with no runs, just one hit allowed and nine strikeouts. Abner Uribe allowed just two hits in 5 innings. Jacob Misiorowski allowed only one run in 10.2 innings, winning game one and the clinching game five. Robert Gasser was equally unhittable, with just one run allowed in his game three start. A start so incredible that it was the first of its type by a left-handed pitcher since legendary Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax.
The whole team was World Series MVP. The whole team was NLCS MVP, and NLDS MVP too. Milwaukee went 11-2 in the postseason against the San Diego Padres, the hottest team in baseball in the second half, the star-studded 100-win Los Angeles Dodgers, and the 98-win Tampa Bay Rays, who tore through the American League. They won eight straight games in the playoffs. Their two losses came by a combined two runs, and their one World Series loss was on a walk-off in the 12th inning after they blew a 3-2 lead.
It's not a stretch to say it's one of the most dominant stretches of playoff baseball in the history of the sport. And it's why we can make the argument that the Milwaukee Brewers broke Major League Baseball. It's not supposed to be this easy, and it rarely is, even for some of the most expensive, talented rosters we've ever seen.
The 2024 Dodgers, with Shohei Ohtani coming off the first 50-50 season in history and a long list of other stars, were down 2-1 in the NLDS to the Padres before coming back to win. It took them six games to beat the Mets in the NLCS. They very nearly lost the clinching game five of the World Series, falling behind 5-0 to the Yankees before the New York defense went on a comical run of errors and mental mistakes. In 2025, they were down to their final two outs in game seven of the series against Toronto, until Miguel Rojas hit a miraculous game-tying homer.
Milwaukee? They never trailed in a series, or even came close. They had a 2-0 lead in the NLDS, a 4-0 lead in the NLCS, and a 3-0 lead in the World Series. It's remarkable.
Which raises the question, how did they do it? What was their philosophy and approach in October? The real answer, boring as it might be, they didn't do anything. Baseball happened.
That's not to say that the Brewers don't have good players or didn't have good results. Misiorowski is going to win the Cy Young Award at 24-years-old, and looks set to dominate the league for years to come. Christian Yelich is a former MVP, multiple-time Silver Slugger Award winner and borderline candidate for the Hall of Fame. William Contreras has been a top-three catcher in baseball for several years. Garrett Mitchell is a former first round pick and top prospect, as is Brice Turang. Jackson Chourio is already a star at 22.
The big secret the Brewers discovered? Have your players get hot at the right time, have a few bounces go your way, rely on some of your less talented players to hit perfectly timed home runs, and sit back and watch as your bullpen goes from very good to almost literally untouchable.
Every year, the greater baseball world looks to find some sort of meaning or blueprint from the team that wins the World Series. In 2024 and 2025, the Dodgers "proved" that you can just guarantee a title by spending money, even though the Mets and Yankees haven't won in decades. In 2023, the Rangers showed you need a veteran manager like Bruce Bochy, and that home runs, Texas hit eight in five games, are how you win in October. Very smart analysts have pointed to quality bullpens, big midseason trades, drafting and development, free agency, dominant starting rotations, home runs, or making contact and putting the ball in play. The reality? You need all of those, and you can't predict which ones you'll actually get when it matters.
Not once in these discussions does anyone acknowledge that the different paths taken by different teams demonstrate that there is no one way to win a championship. And that the disparate approaches to roster construction show that what actually matters is a combination of timing, randomness, luck, and talent. Because there has to be meaning and lessons and broad conclusions to draw from every outcome, the baseball world picks a reason and explanation, then quietly discards it when next year's team does the opposite.
Here are a few examples of why looking for meaning in playoff baseball is pointless. "Clutch" hitting is frequently praised as meaningful and predictive. Some players just have the "clutch" gene, the received baseball wisdom goes. So let's look at superstar shorstop Corey Seager as an example. Seager had an astonishing run in the 2020 playoffs, hitting. 328 with eight home runs and 20 runs batted in, winning NLCS and World Series MVP. One of the best postseasons ever. Clutch hitter, right?
In 2016 and 2017, he went a combined 18 for 82. Then in the 2019 postseason went 3-20 with two singles and no homers. In 2021, Seager was 9-48, a .188 batting average. In 2023, he was once again a force of nature for Texas, hitting .318 with six homers. So is Seager the clutch playoff force from 2020 and 2023, or the hopeless, unclutch, "moment is too big" failure from 2016, 2017, 2019, and 2021?
Therein lies the problem. Corey Seager is an elite hitter, but even the best hitters go through hot and cold streaks. Pitchers go through hot and cold streaks. They can't pick and choose when those streaks happen, because if they could, they'd all pick to be hot in October. Derek Jeter hit .235 in the 1998 playoffs, .226 in the 2001 playoffs, .245 in 2004, .176 in 2007, and .250 in 2010 and 2011. He also had plenty of very good results in other years. That's baseball.
Aaron Ashby quite literally had the greatest October by a relief pitcher in baseball history. Next year, he could be the worst pitcher on the team in the NLDS. That's baseball. Robert Gasser could be horrible next season after his dominance in this year's playoffs. That's baseball. Look at last year's Toronto Blue Jays.
Ernie Clement, literally Ernie Clement, set the record for most hits in a single postseason with an incredible 30 in 73 at bats. In 2026, he was 20% worse than league average offensively, cost his team 14 runs compared to an average hitter, and had a .285 on base percentage. In the 2025 playoffs, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a .356 batting average on balls in play. Addison Barger was .422, Ernie Clement was .420, and George Springer .319. Predictably, the Blue Jays scored a lot of runs in October.
In 2026, Guerrero had a .288 BABIP, Springer was .282, Clement .272, and Barger was .063 in his few games before he got hurt. Toronto finished in last place and missed the playoffs. That is also baseball. There's no predictive value from the tournament, because players do not magically become different in October. There's just a typical distribution of outcomes, particularly among good teams, that sometimes goes your way and sometimes doesn't.
None of this means the Brewers didn't deserve to win, or weren't a good team. They absolutely did, and they absolutely are. They deserve an immense amount of credit for identifying players in the draft or international markets, as well as in trades and free agency, that they thought they could improve or would fit specific needs. But looking for some sort of explanation or path for your favorite team to follow is insane. Because while you need good players to win, you can't predict how they'll perform over a few weeks of small sample sizes. It's just...baseball. Enjoy it when your team wins, celebrate it, and understand that the inherent variability of it ensures it can't ever be broken.
'Nightcaps' is a daily column that catches you up on the biggest sports, news and culture stories you may have missed while pretending to do work at your desk. It runs Monday-Friday on OutKick.com.
Over the hump and safely onto the other side of the week. Is this the biggest weekend of the year to date?
I think it might be.
We've got football all weekend long, obviously. Duh. More importantly, we also have Halloween, which lands on a Saturday. I did some big J digging, and it's the last time that'll happen until 2037. True story. Eleven years! Lord knows what this place will look like in 11 years, but I assume if this column is somehow still alive, it'll be run by a robot. That's almost a guarantee.
Beyond all of that, we also get an extra hour of Halloween this weekend! That's right. The dreaded "fall back" weekend is upon us. I loved this time of year in college, but that was, admittedly, a long time ago. Nothing hit better than being at a party and seeing the iPhone 4 clock switch back to 1 a.m.
It was the best.
But I have kids now, and they do not care what the clock says. So, come Sunday morning when it says 5:30, they'll be up and ready to roll.
"Just put them to bed later!"
Doesn't work for a 2-year-old, folks. They don't care. Hard hats on, parents. We're all in this together.
On that note, welcome to a Thursday Nightcaps — the one where Lane Kiffin, somehow, finds something else to complain about. College football fans ain't having it.
Nor should they.
What else? I've got Paige Spiranac teasing her Halloween costume ahead of the big day, another subdued baseball celebration last night, and where did this MLB postseason rank for you?
I gotta be honest ... it wasn't great. And now we're going into a lockout.
The vibes aren't the best right now! But we'll get into it.
Grab you a tiny violin for Lane Kiffin and the LSU Tigers, and settle in for a Thursday 'Cap!
LSU-'Bama takes an afternoon seat
Let's get this ball rolling, because the rain has finally stopped here in Florida for the first time since Sunday and I've got a pumpkin patch to get to before it starts back up.
Big weekend of college football, as I said earlier. Now, I hate to jump ahead a week, but Lane Kiffin has left me no choice.
For about six months now, fans have had Nov. 7 circled on their calendars. It's shaping up to be, arguably, the greatest weekend of college football ever.
And, of course, Alabama-LSU. That's the big one, right?
... Right?
...... RIGHT?!
Fans aren't buying it this time
"If someone thinks the SEC wants us to win this year after what’s been going on, they must have just been on Mars the last four months. So I guess when I look at it that way, I’m not surprised."
So, Lane Kiffin sent shots at the SEC for next weekend's big game not being in primetime, which is hilarious for a couple different reasons.
The SEC doesn't make those decisions, ESPN does. Sure, I'd imagine the SEC has plenty of input, but it's still an ESPN call to make.
LSU has already played more home games under the lights than any other SEC teams this season. The Tigers have had four night games. Texas has had three. Everyone else has no more than two.
Miami-Notre Dame on NBC will be a juggernaut. ESPN putting its best game in a standalone(ish) time makes sense. Some will say they're scared to go up against that game. Perhaps. But there was no reason to fight that battle when 3:30 on ABC is a perfectly fine time.
Totally unrelated, of course, but here's Lane Kiffin on LSU ... just two short years ago:
So, when Lane was at Ole Miss, everyone was out to get him. Now, he's at LSU and ... everyone's out to get him?
See a pattern? It's silly. I used to love Lane Kiffin, by the way. He was a content machine. He was fun, and likable, and somewhat relatable.
Wrapping up the World Series & Paige's Halloween tease!
For what it's worth, LSU is 1-7 since 2012 against Alabama in night games in Baton Rouge. Perhaps Lane should be thanking ESPN/SEC for this one?
OK, let's rapid-fire this Thursday class into a big night of FOOTBALL!
PS: I know there's an NFL game on tonight, but don't forget about college. Did you know there's a game on ESPN tonight with an OVER/UNDER set at 76.5?!
That's right. North Texas and FAU. A biggie. Does anyone here have the stones to take the over when it's at that number? I think I'll dabble.
Speaking of stones ... how about the Milwaukee Brewers just quietly completing one of the most dominant postseason runs of all time? Think about it.
They manhandles the Padres, swept the Dodgers, and then pretty much had their way with Tampa ...
And then treated winning it all like they'd just polished off a three-game sweep of the Marlins in June:
Thoughts? I've honestly thought all the celebrations this postseason have been pretty t(l)ame. There's certainly something to be said about "acting like you've been there before."
I get that ...
Except this was Milwaukee's first ever World Series title! And that's what we got? I don't know. Just seemed a bit off.
Frankly, this whole postseason did:
I love baseball. I watch every Red Sox game all year long. I'm a 162-er. I'm not trying to knock it here ... but yeah, it was a bad postseason. Sometimes it just happens, right?
The best part was watching the Dodgers lose. I think we can all agree on that, right? But otherwise, there really weren't any moments. I guess you could point to Milwaukee's walk-off against Mason Miller a month ago as a pivotal moment. That was fun.
But you just never really felt it, right? Again, sometimes that's just the way it goes. You're not gonna bat a thousand every year.
William Contreras is on top of the world right now.
The Milwaukee Brewers star catcher was named World Series MVP for his outstanding performance at the plate and behind the dish. During the process of the Brewers’ 4-1 series victory over the Tampa Bay Rays, Contreras also made history.
During the series, he stole a base and threw out four runners attempting to steal, including American League stolen base leader Chandler Simpson. He became the first catcher since Bill Dickey of the New York Yankees in 1938 to steal a base and throw out the opposing team's leading base stealer in a World Series victory, according to OptaSTATS.
"I don’t want to offend any of the other catchers in the league. The last thing I want to do is offend any of them," Contreras said, speaking through a translator. "But sitting up here today, champion of the world, I feel like I’m the best catcher in the league. Again, that’s no disrespect to any of them. That’s the last thing I want to do. But today I feel like I’m the best catcher in the world."
Throwing out Simpson is no easy feat, as he stole 46 bases during the regular season and five more in the postseason.
The 28-year-old catcher was omnipresent during the World Series, hitting .381 with four RBI while anchoring the Brewers’ elite pitching staff, which held the Rays to just 11 runs in five games. Contreras also excelled with the automated ball-strike (ABS) system, winning 10 of his 13 challenges.
"He's our pit bull. You don’t just walk up and pet him. There’s a chance you get nipped," manager Pat Murphy said.
Contreras became the eighth catcher to be named World Series MVP, joining Gene Tenace (1972), Johnny Bench (1976), Steve Yeager (1981 co-winner), Darrell Porter (1982), Rick Dempsey (1983), Pat Borders (1992) and Salvador Perez (2015) as catchers to win the award.
Contreras has been a linchpin in the Brewers' lineup since they acquired him from the Atlanta Braves in 2022. This season, Contreras hit .270 with 18 home runs and 94 RBI in 147 games before elevating his performance in the postseason.
The Bronx Bombers were obliterated in the postseason, getting swept in the American League Division Series and tying their longest World Series drought since winning their first in 1923.
When the Milwaukee Brewers won their first-ever Fall Classic, the Yankees continued to be a topic of conversation.
National League Championship Series MVP Jake Bauers handed manager Pat Murphy the ball from the final out, and the two shared a hug. Murphy then shared some words with Bauers.
"You're going to be a rich f---er. Just remember when you were on that horses--- Yankees team and you guys were all playing for yourself? Just remember, say, 'This is the way we used to do it,'" Murphy appeared to tell his first baseman.
Bauers spent one season with the Yankees, and it was the only time since 2016 they missed the postseason after going 82-80 in 2023. Bauers hit .202 with New York and was traded in the ensuing offseason.
In any case, the Yankees have been criticized a decent amount since their elimination by executives, media, and even their own legends.
Alex Rodriguez said the team's "philosophy" has to change, and Derek Jeter hinted that the Yankees don't do the "little things."
CC Sabathia, Anthony Rizzo and Jorge Posada, two of whom have their numbers retired in Monument Park, have also lambasted the organization for their postseason failures since 2010.
Bauers had the best season of his career this year, as his .266/.389/.484 slash line represented all the best marks of his career. He also hit 26 homers and drove in 86 runs, both career highs.
Welcome to Screencaps, "America's Best Daily Column," as named by the readers. Screencaps, which publishes seven-days-a-week, is a mix of sports, pop culture, and emails from sane readers from around the world. This column isn't for the coastal elites. Give us a week to steal your heart. Our track record is pretty good. Let's have some fun.
Kylie Cantrall is back and she's hinting that the Brewers might want to bring her back for future anthems
You might remember Kylie from Monday Screencaps where I asked you guys if Kylie's Game 2 anthem performance in Milwaukee was the best anthem since Whitney Houston at the Super Bowl. It was Kylie's big breakout performance and it felt like that would be the end of the story.
Nope. There was Los Angeles-native Kylie, 21, Wednesday night leaning right into her relationship with Milwaukee as the franchise was on its way to winning Game 5 and the World Series. "@brewers happy i could b your good luck charm for game 2 ;) thx for having meee," she wrote.
This IG post now has nearly 40k likes.
Kylie's going to mess around and sell out Miller Park one of these days over a simple gesture of a pop singer showing she cares about the people of Milwaukee. This woman is wise beyond her years.
For those of you who don't know what COSM is, it's like going to a massive movie theater with a MASSIVE wraparound IMAX screen that broadcasts the game as an immersive experience where the camera angles make it feel like you're inside the venue.
Last night, it felt like we were sitting on the field behind home plate at Tropicana Field.
Quick hitters:
IT'S EXPENSIVE. UNLESS YOU'RE LOADED, YOU'RE NOT GOING THERE AS A FAMILY VERY OFTEN. You're probably never taking your family there, to be honest. It WILL get expensive very, very fast. Just so we're all clear this is #NOTSPONSORED. I paid my own money.
Price: We paid $77 per person to sit on a three-person couch dead-center on the lowest level they offer in the dome. There were high-top tables on the floor below us, but I highly don't recommend those because you're going to be sitting at a high top for three hours. There are cheaper options to sit in other parts of the building where there are massive screens that will remind you guys of ESPN Zone, but on steroids.
Food prices: Barbacoa nachos were $16 and easily shared between three people. The Bavarian pretzel was $14 and easily shared between at least two people. The pretzel came with pimento cheese, Stroh's beer cheese and mustards. I thought it was wonderful.
Beer prices: I looked, but didn't really look. I think they were $16 for 22 oz or something like that. Again, not cheap.
Atmosphere: Let me repeat, it's expensive. You're not getting many dirtbags at this place. That doesn't mean it's not possible, but the clientele last night was like sitting in an expensive suite at a sporting event. There were a group of kids with their dads, but we're not talking about kids raising hell like they're at Chuck E. Cheese. You have to buy a ticket to even get into COSM. People aren't just walking in like old sports bars.
Cool Factor: Off the charts. Guys, at our age, we've all lived through Damon's Steakhouse (RIP) with its four 100" screens and speakers on the tables that mesmerized all of us. ESPN Zone (RIP) was life-changing. Dave & Busters has great screens to watch games, but the cool factor isn't even close to COSM.
Would I pay $300 to sit in the COSM dome to watch NFL games? No chance. A $300 ticket (yes, Lions fans are paying that) is going to turn into a $600 day at the bar. I'll say it again, the common man should not go here thinking he's at ESPN Zone grabbing a beer and a table. You might be able to sit in one of the other rooms and enjoy yourself, but then you're paying to watch games at a bar.
Yes, I highly recommend it if you need to take a client out for a night: The client is going to have a blast on your company credit card and you're probably going to make the sale because he'll want more trips to COSM. Just make sure you get chair seating along one of the rails in the five lowest levels. A couch with a client is going to be awkward.
Conclusion: Go see it. Don't complain about it being expensive. Let yourself be transported for a few hours and then go back to watching games in your man cave with dollar beers from Costco.
It's no wonder we have a ref shortage in youth sports
Did you guys see this out of Ohio? Watch what happens at midfield. And some people wonder why I'd be so happy that Screencaps Jr. selected cross country as one of his sports. I've never seen a runner snap on the official timing clock at the finishing line.
• Jake in Charlottesville, VA emails on the state of youth soccer:Sports is the one place where 'socialism' is actually required, especially at the youth level. If you let one kid take all of the reps from the other kids, the other kids' parents are going to pull their kids out and you're not going to have a league.
Either suck it up and know that your prodigy child isn't going to be allowed to take all of the reps from the other kids, or move the kid up a level. We had a case in our soccer rec league where a girl was completely dominating her rec league, so they moved her up with the boys.
Needless to say, her domination stopped. The thing was, this girl had become so accustomed to dominating, she had become a spoiled little brat, and couldn't emotionally deal with the fact that she was now very average when she played amongst the boys (this was U8). But hey, there are life lessons for all involved, kids and parents alike.
• Lee D. in Tampa asks: Two questions: Is this the Gators girl that was "discovered" at a Gators game by ABC? Is this AI?
Kinsey: Yes. I don't think so, but I'm positive. That's definitely Peyton Bloomquist or whatever her name is. As for the video, I've seen the Amalfi Jets guy do content for probably 18 months or so. I think this is the same guy.
Keep in mind that right now, sororities are teaming with major brands on content marketing. Massive corporations like Nike are working with sororities to push clothing. I could see Amalfi throwing Peyton a free flight for appearing in a video.
• Chris A. emails:Really, it took this long for a cereal box to have a liner that actually keeps the cereal fresh? It's almost impossible to open the plastic bags inside the boxes without tearing them halfway down the side, but trying to open the aluminum foil-like bags in a box of Sugar Smacks without tearing it all the way to the bottom was futile. I've been wondering when this day would come.
And BTW, I would NEVER have someone else pick out my groceries, even the canned stuff. But when I go to Walmart for groceries, the aisles are filled with grocery pickers who outnumber the pick-your-own shoppers. Unless you're really old or really handicapped, put down the phone and get your lazy behind to the grocery store. But those same people would park in the fire lane to shop, so maybe they should stay home.
Video work calls and beer cans
• 'Sheriff' John in Houston checks in:1) I hate it intensely, but the age of "conference calls" and "dial-ins" is coming to an end. Everything is a zoom or teams meeting now. I much prefer sitting and listening on my headset while farting around doing something else. Hate having the camera on. At least I don't have a boss telling me that I MUST turn on my camera as a matter of POLICY, that would really suck.
Nonetheless, I've lately had contractors and counterparties make comments during meetings lately that they prefer to have the cameras on and they don't trust people who just do audio only. ARRRGGH. You don't need to see me for me to tell you your proposal costs 20% too much. I feel like the guy who insists on using a paper ticket at the airport. Just old and out of date.
Cameras are so prevalent now, I've procured a green screen to pull down behind my desk so that I can just project an image of my office cleaned up behind me and not show the pile of papers and junk and extension cords that accumulates behind me. It's literally a picture of my own office during my zoom calls, but it's cleaned up.
2) My older son isn't quite as old as Rick's sons, just a sophomore in college, but he too makes a mess with beer cans and bottles when he's home. Drives me and my wife crazy. We ask him to clean up after himself and he gets about 90-95% of the way there, but still a mess. He needs to find a woman of his own to snap him into gear and be less of a slob. I think that's just part of normal male growing up. I think back to my bachelor days and I was pretty terrible, too, until I met my wife.
That's it this morning. The sun is out & it's going to be 76 today. I'm dragging after getting five hours of sleep, but there's work to do and a yard to mow tonight. It's time to get after it before a critical Halloween weekend and Mrs. Screencaps' birthday.
Login
