The Milwaukee Brewers will be watching closely as the Chicago Cubs play a best-of-three series against the San Diego Padres.
The Milwaukee Brewers won the season series against the Chicago Cubs, but they can't say the same when it comes to the San Diego Padres.
All it takes is for one team to get hot in the Wild Card round to derail everything, and who knows what version of this Brewers team we're going to see coming off a bye.
Milwaukee was on quite the impressive streak to end the regular season, and that includes them coming into the National League Division Series on a five-game winning streak.
That said, none of those games were against the Cubs or Padres.
While it would be great for this series to go three games that way, the Brewers are facing a somewhat beat-down opponent; absolutely nothing is guaranteed at this point in the season.
Brewers beat Cubs in last year's NLDS
Obviously, Brewers and Cubs fans haven't forgotten about what transpired in the 2025 NLDS. Milwaukee jumped out to a 2-0 series lead and, while the Cubs made things interesting when the series shifted to Wrigley Field, the Brewers were able to hang on and won game five.
Should those two teams face off again in this year's edition of the NLDS, who's to say anything would end differently?
Milwaukee was an impressive 9-4 against the Cubs in the regular season, and while Pete Crow-Armstrong is likely going to be named the NL MVP, he can only do so much to save this team's bullpen.
The Cubs have a fine starting rotation, no doubt, but once it gets to that bullpen, everything changes. Time and time again, the Brewers found themselves trailing this team, only for things to be blown up in the later innings once Craig Counsell pulls his starter.
Brewers went 2-4 against Padres this season
When looking at these teams' two series against each other this season, San Diego has a clear advantage.
The regular season is one thing, but a best-of-five winner-take-all postseason showdown is another.
Milwaukee took two of three at American Family Field against the Padres from May 12-14, but then the Padres swept the Brewers from August 10-12.
Keep in mind that was the second West Coast road trip for the Brewers in the span of two weeks, so that sort of grueling travel schedule isn't something Milwaukee will have to deal with in the playoffs.
That's not making an excuse for the Brewers, far from it, but they used that sweep as a wake-up call, as they would go on to win seven of their next nine games.
