Milwaukee Brewers: Can They Come Back And Win The Division?

The Milwaukee Brewers and their fans had their sights set on a NL Central division title in 2018. Is that within reach?

As of August 27th, the Milwaukee Brewers are 4.5 games back of the Chicago Cubs and sit in third place in the division. Coming back from this deficit with 30 games to go is not impossible. But it’s still a difficult task and the Brewers are running out of time. They need to get on a hot stretch and get on it soon.

Coming up, the Brewers will be facing the Reds and the Nationals, one is a cellar dweller and the other is an underachiever that has punted the season. If they don’t win at least five of those six games, the Brewers will only be hurting themselves.

During that time, the Cubs will be facing the Mets, and the Phillies with one game against the Braves sandwiched between them. They’ll likely roll over the Mets and the Phillies have been struggling lately.

Playing Against The Cubs

The Brewers have six games remaining against the Chicago Cubs this season. They play at Miller Park September 3-5 and at Wrigley Field September 10-12. Say the Brewers enter those games down by three or four games, and they likely will, if they’re going to make up the ground necessary to win the division, they’re going to have to win five of six.

They’re going to have to sweep one series and win the other at an absolute minimum if they’re going to take the division. If they only win four of the six games, they only pick up two games in the standings, and will remain behind the Cubs. If those six games with the Cubs come to pass and the Brewers are still behind in the standings, it’s time to focus all of the attention on the Wild Card.

The Cubs are a strong second half team. They’ve been playing well and winning the games they’ve needed to, while the Brewers continue to drop back.

Other Opportunities To Catch Ground

The Cubs have a four game series on the road against the Nationals while the Brewers are playing the Giants at home. The Brewers have done well against the NL West this season and the Nationals could be tough at home when they have nothing to lose.

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Also, from September 17-19, the Brewers have a home series against the Reds, while the Cubs are on the road in Arizona playing against the Diamondbacks. The D-Backs are a potential playoff team this year and could win the West. They’ll be a tough opponent that should take at least one game from the Cubs.

Finally, it could all come down to the final series of the season. The Cubs have to face the St. Louis Cardinals, who are still in the thick of the playoff hunt, while the Milwaukee Brewers have a home series against the rebuilding Detroit Tigers.

Can They Still Win The Division?

It all depends on how they do in those six games against the Cubs. If they don’t win at least five of those six games, they’ve made it awfully difficult for themselves to grab a lead and hold it. They’ll be chasing from behind after that and won’t be in control of their own destiny.

It might take close to 95 wins to take this division from the Cubs. The Brewers currently sit at 73 wins. With 30 games remaining, they will need to go 22-8 over the final month to reach those 95 wins and take this division. It’s going to take an incredible hot streak for this division title to happen.

While it’s possible they could go 22-8 over the final 30 games, it’s not very likely given the pitching situation and the way this team has played recently. We’ll see where they stand after those games against the Cubs, but the division may be out of reach.

As long as the Milwaukee Brewers make the playoffs, fans likely won’t be too upset. Making the Wild Card game would be a nice consolation, however, winning that game and getting to an NLDS is the key for satisfaction with this team.

Not making the playoffs simply cannot be an option with this team. They’ve invested too much in this roster to not make it.