For once, the Milwaukee Brewers aren't limping into the postseason.

Even with this team securing the first-round bye a year ago, things still felt a bit off as they lost two of their last three games, but most importantly, six of their last nine.

Here in 2026, the Brewers are able to enjoy skipping the Wild Card round, and they head into the National League Division Series riding a five-game winning streak.

This is a Brewers team that has only lost one game going back to Friday, Sept. 18, and it's incredible to think they finished the year with a 103-59 record.

Every single player has contributed to this team in one way or another, and that's why it's so crucial to see everyone healthy going into the playoffs.

This team didn't win 15 of their last 18 games because of a fluke; they won it because guys like Andrew Vaughn and Joey Ortiz stepped up and exceeded all expectations.

Those are just two players on a lengthy list who deserve a ton of praise, though they're the two who are most worth keeping an eye on ahead of the first game of the NLDS on Saturday, Oct. 3.

According to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Curt Hogg, Vaughn is indeed good to go, but fans were wondering why he hadn't been in the lineup for quite some time.

The answer was the flu, a sickness the team knew they couldn't have spreading around the locker room.

In fact, Vaughn lost 10 pounds when he was sick, and that's something they've been working on with the playoffs right around the corner.

Vaughn's contributions to this team have been incredible, to say the least. He's a rock-solid platoon option with Jake Bauers at first base, but he also showed his abilities wherever the team needed him, even if he didn't look the most comfortable at third base.

Manager Pat Murphy said Ortiz is someone to "keep an eye on" as his recent MRI results were far from the end of the world, but they revealed the 28-year-old is quite banged up.

Reports came out that he was dealing with three potential issues, but now Hogg has narrowed it down to his knee and abdomen.

With the NLDS just a few days away, it would be incredibly surprising to see Ortiz left off the roster entirely, but the last thing the Brewers can do is have someone taking up a spot if they're not at 100%.