Milwaukee Brewers: 5 Bold Predictions For The 2019 Season

The Milwaukee Brewers are getting closer and closer to the start of the 2019 regular season. Since we’re still in spring training, it’s time to make some bold predictions about the upcoming season.

After a 2018 season that saw the Milwaukee Brewers win the NL Central and come within one game of the World Series, expectations are high for this team heading into 2019.

Bold predictions are an interesting thing, because a baseball season is so unpredictable. Even the boldest predictions didn’t have Christian Yelich running away with the NL MVP award nor would they have Jesus Aguilar as an All-Star.

But there are a lot of reasons for optimism this season, and if these bold predictions come true, it’s going to be another magical season in Milwaukee. Let’s take a look into our crystal ball and see what we can predict about the future.

Bold Prediction #1

Christian Yelich somehow gets even better, wins NL MVP again

Christian Yelich rode a phenomenal second half to a nearly unanimous MVP title. His first half was good, but not outstanding. It was that 3 month stretch post-All Star game that won Yelich his MVP and numerous other awards and recognition.

Yelich finished 2018 with a .326/.402/.598 slash line with 34 doubles, 36 home runs, 110 RBIs, and 22 stolen bases. Can Yelich get even better than those numbers? I certainly wouldn’t bet against him.

In all likelihood, Yelich’s batting average will stay roughly similar but might drop a tiny bit. His on-base percentage will likely go up since pitchers around the league are now well aware of what Yelich can do and will probably pitch around him a bit more and not throw him strikes. A walk is much preferable to giving up a double or a home run.

With another season in Miller Park, Yelich should see similar power numbers, and they may even take another slight bump since he’s grown as a player and has most likely improved his skills over the offseason. Yelich is entering his age-27 season, this is his prime. 2019 may be the best season yet for Yelich and another NL MVP award cannot be counted out.

It’s very difficult to win MVP two years in a row, but another season with similar stats should see Yelich at the very least in the middle of that race for MVP. Being on a playoff/division winning team also helps his chances. It may not be that bold of a prediction to say Yelich will put up great numbers in 2019, but he can get even better and another MVP award could be in his future.

Bold Prediction #2

Jimmy Nelson picks up where he left off, wins Comeback Player Of The Year

The longrunning Jimmy Nelson saga is nearing its next stage. With Nelson finally healthy and ready to make his Cactus League debut on Monday, Milwaukee Brewers fans and players alike will get to see Nelson in game action for the first time since September 2017.

Personally, I’m a big believer in Jimmy Nelson and think that he can continue to pitch in the dominant form he was in prior to his injury. The reports from Spring Training are all good and he’s seemingly looking better than ever.

If Nelson truly is better than ever, there’s no reason he can’t pick up where he left off in 2017 and continue his upward trajectory as a starting pitcher. He was on his way to ace status in 2017 and now he has to prove once again that he’s a dominant frontline starter.

I’m predicting a strong season for Jimmy Nelson. The Milwaukee Brewers will watch his innings closely and will likely prevent him from reaching 200 innings this year. But I think he can still reach 175 innings and post a sub-3.50 ERA.

Should Nelson be able to do that, he’ll be in strong contention for the Comeback Player of the Year award, given annually to a player who “re-emerged on the baseball field during a given season”. That description would fit Nelson perfectly after being stuck in the shadows in 2018 while rehabbing. If he re-emerges, finishes ~175 innings with a strong ERA, that award is Nelson’s.

Nelson’s velocity appears to be back where it once was and he might have even added a tick or two to that fastball. The current Brewers rotation doesn’t have many flamethrowers, and Nelson was the resident flamethrower prior to his injury. With the return of Nelson, he and Corbin Burnes will be the two hard-throwing starters in the rotation.

Speaking of Corbin Burnes…

Bold Prediction #4

The Brewers will have 6(!) players with 30+ home runs this season

For the past two seasons, the Milwaukee Brewers have had three players with 30+ home runs in a season. In 2017, it was Travis Shaw, Domingo Santana, and Eric Thames. In 2018, it was Shaw, Jesus Aguilar, and Christian Yelich.

This year, the Brewers will double that number and will have six players with 30+ home runs.

Shaw, Aguilar, and Yelich are all good bets to repeat their 30+ home run performances. Ryan Braun used to hit 30+ home runs in a season regularly, and with his swing change this offseason that emphasizes launch angle, Braun is looking to get back to his 30 home run ways in 2019. Health is the most important factor for Braun reaching this total, but his swing change should help him make the most of his time on the field.

Mike Moustakas had 28 home runs last season and 20 of those came with the Royals. He played in a ballpark that suppressed left handed power. Now he’s going to spend a full season in Miller Park and that should help boost his home run totals. He knocked 38 home runs in 2017 and we could see him do that again in 2019 in a more friendly ballpark.

Yasmani Grandal also has a ton of power, especially coming from the catcher position. Even though he’s a switch hitter, most of Grandal’s power comes from the left side of the plate, and that makes Miller Park a great place for him. He hit 24 home runs last season and that was while playing in the pitcher-friendly ballparks of the NL West. By putting him in the NL Central with more hitter-friendly stadiums and the large number of right handed pitchers in this division, and this should be a career year for Grandal.

Should all these players stay healthy, there’s no reason to believe any of them can’t hit 30 home runs. Six players with 30 home runs is probably some kind of record for this franchise, possibly the league. They can do this.

Bold Prediction #5

The Milwaukee Brewers are World Series champions

You can call this a bold prediction, or you can say it isn’t bold at all based on how the team is constructed and what we witnessed last year. But believe it or not, it’s a bold prediction.

Winning a World Series is extremely difficult, and we know the Milwaukee Brewers have never won one. It’s difficult enough to make the World Series as we learned last season. It takes a lot of things to go right over a 162 game season to even make the playoffs. No matter how well your roster is set up for October, players are still human and bats can go cold and pitchers can get tired.

Despite all the possibilities for things to go wrong, the Milwaukee Brewers and their below-league average payroll will end up on top at the end of the day and will win the World Series. We’ll have a parade in Milwaukee this year.

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Repeating as World Series champions is extremely difficult, and the Boston Red Sox have lost their closer Craig Kimbrel. Their bullpen can’t match the stuff the Brewers bullpen has. The lineups are both dominant and the rotations have great potential.

The National League is extremely deep this year. Three teams are pushing to win the NL West, four teams in the NL East are pushing to win that division, and all five teams in the NL Central are going to be competitive and are pushing for the title. If the Brewers can get out of the mess that is the National League, they can defeat whichever team the AL puts up.

The Milwaukee Brewers have the lineup to outscore anyone. The Brewers have the bullpen to shut down anyone when they have the lead. The Brewers have the depth in the starting rotation and possible studs in Corbin Burnes and Jimmy Nelson to lead them. This is a complete team.

While the Brewers may not get the national respect and attention as World Series contenders, that’s because they look down on the Brewers because of their small payroll and lack of established starters in their rotation. You don’t need a $200 million payroll to field a World Series team. David Stearns has proven that you can win with half the payroll of the big market clubs.

What separates this Milwaukee Brewers team from the pack is their culture. The clubhouse culture this team has is so strong and so family oriented that it improves their play on the field. Having the right attitude and a winning culture is so important. Now that most of these players have postseason experience, the stage won’t seem as bright as it might have last year.

This group is a year older and a year wiser. The young pitchers will take more steps forward, the hitters will take more steps forward. After the NLCS, the only forward step is the World Series. And in 2019, the Milwaukee Brewers will win it all.

If the first four bold predictions come true, then there’s a very strong chance that the final bold prediction will come true as well.