It took five-and-a-half decades, but the Milwaukee Brewers finally got over the hump when they secured their first World Series title on Oct. 28. 

It was the Brewers' second shot at the Fall Classic, and after losing it in 1982, they made quick work of the Tampa Bay Rays last season to hoist the Commissioner's Trophy. 

Milwaukee was the best team in baseball throughout a good portion of the regular season, and it remained the top team all the way to the end. To win it all, a team has to do so many things right, and so many things have to go right for them. 

It's a combination of luck and skill, and the Brewers had both. However, that does not mean everyone on the roster had a productive year. 

One player who experienced a decline was right fielder Sal Frelick.

The 2026 season served as Frelick's fourth on Milwaukee's major-league roster after the organization selected him with the 15th overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft. Since making his debut on July 22, 2023, Frelick has become a mainstay in the starting lineup.

However, his numbers at the plate fell precipitously. That was after a productive 2025 season in which he played in 142 games and posted a .288 batting average, a .351 on-base percentage, a .405 slugging percentage and a .756 OPS with 12 home runs and 63 RBIs.

During the 2026 campaign, Frelick played in 31 fewer games due to injury, and his batting average fell to .230 while his on-base percentage (.295) and his slugging percentage (.319) also suffered. Frelick's OPS took the worst hit, falling to .614.

In the playoffs, Frelick was a little better: his batting average increased to .235, his on-base percentage increased to .341, his slugging percentage rose to .353 and his OPS rose to .694 over 10 games and 34 at-bats. Compared to his stats at the plate during the 2025 playoffs, there was a dramatic improvement.

Frelick may not be known for his bat, but it seemed that after the 2025 season, he had become a well-above-average hitter. He is still a reliable defender after posting a .994 fielding percentage over 104 games in right field, in which he committed just one error. 

It would be beneficial to both him and the Brewers if he could be more productive with the bat in his hands. At just 26 years old, he still has time to make it happen.