Milwaukee Brewers: Picking the All-Decade Team of the 2010s

All-decade teams are all the rage right now, especially with the sports world currently on pause. So, let’s create one for the Brewers based on arguably the most successful decade of their existence.

The 2010s were a new golden age for Milwaukee Brewers baseball. The decade saw playoff appearances in 2011, 2018, and 2019 and generated far more optimism in the fan base than they were used to in decades prior.

The talent level on the team was at a level that hadn’t been seen since the 1980s. This 2010s began with names like Fielder, Weeks, and Braun, and it ended with names like Yelich, Cain, and….well, also Braun.

So as often happens at the end of decades, let’s look back at the top players of the 2010s and create the Reviewing the Brew All-Decade Team based on the best of them.  For our exercise, we will be taking the top single-season performances from the best players of the decade as determined by fWAR to decide who makes the team.

A few more ground rules for our squad:

• Since this is pre-2020, 26-man rosters don’t exist yet, so we will be working with a 25-man roster.
• Also, in honor of Craig Counsell, who managed a majority of Brewers games in the decade, we’ll be picking 13 pitchers and 12 position players
• Players can only make the team once. Christian Yelich had two of the top three fWARs of the decade, but that doesn’t mean he gets to occupy two outfield spots. What fun would that be?

The resulting squad combined for a total of 13 All-Star appearances, four Silver Sluggers, an All-Star Game MVP, a Gold Glove, and a National League MVP. Amazingly, every year of the decade was represented by at least one player.

The 2018 team that was just a Game 7 loss away from a World Series berth led the way with four representatives on our All-Decade team. Who will join them? Let’s get to it!

The Infield

First Baseman: 2011 Prince Fielder (4.7 fWAR)

Fielder had many great seasons in Milwaukee, but by fWAR, 2011 was his finest. He led the team in several categories including homers (38), RBI (120), walks (107), and on base percentage (.415) and was so feared at the dish that he led the league with 32 intentional walks, eight clear of second place.

Fielder garnered an All-Star nod, a Silver Slugger, and finished third to a teammate who will be named later in the NL MVP voting. However, he did collect a different MVP trophy when his three-run bomb paced the National League to a win in the 2011 All-Star game.

Second Baseman: 2010 Rickie Weeks (5.9 fWAR)

The gold standard for Brewers’ second basemen was set early on last decade with Weeks’ 2010 season. Though often overshadowed by teammates like Fielder, Jonathan Lucroy, Ryan Braun, it was actually Weeks who had the team’s highest fWAR that year.

Weeks led the team with 112 runs scored and led the league in at bats (651) and plate appearances (754) and was apparently an annoying enough hitter to face where he led the league in being hit by pitches (25) as well. His 29 homers were third on the team and made him one of five Brewers to hit over 20 home runs that year.

Third Baseman: 2012 Aramis Ramirez (5.4 fWAR)

Ramirez was brought to Milwaukee from the rival Cubs in an attempt to replicate the success of 2011. Though they failed to make the playoffs for a second straight season, it was not Ramirez’s fault.

The 34-year-old had the best season of his career by fWAR as he slashed .300/.360/.540 and was second on the team with a .901 OPS. Ramirez led the league with 50 doubles that year and finished second on the team to Braun in runs (92), homers (27), and RBI (105).

Shortstop: 2013 Jean Segura (4.0 fWAR)

Shortstop has often been a void for the Brewers, offensively, over the years. However, that was not the case in 2013 as Segura parlayed his first full season in Milwaukee into the lone All-Star appearance of his career.

Segura led qualifying Brewers with a .294 average and tied for the team lead with 10 triples. He also paced the team with 44 steals, the best single-season mark of anyone on our All-Decade team.

Catcher And Outfield

Catcher: 2014 Jonathan Lucroy (8.2 fWAR)

2014 may have been a year to forget for Brewers fans (at least the end of the season was) but it certainly wasn’t that way for Lucroy. He had the highest fWAR of any player over the entire decade that year, even higher than players like Braun or Yelich ever achieved.

Lucroy’s 2014 season was supported by a .301/.373/.456 slash line, .837 OPS, and a league leading 53 doubles. He led the team in average, slugging, OPS, doubles, and walks (66). Lucroy also finished 4th in the NL MVP voting and reached his first of two career All-Star games.

Left Field: 2011 Ryan Braun (7.1 fWAR)

Of course it’s no surprise that of all the great Ryan Braun seasons, 2011 gets him the nod at left field. That was the year he punctuated the team’s playoff run with the first MVP by a Brewer since Robin Yount in 1989.

Braun led the league that year in slugging (.597) and OPS (.994) while leading the team in runs (109), doubles (38), steals (33), and batting average (.332). He also mirrored his teammate Fielder in earning an All-Star nod and a Silver Slugger.

Center Field: 2013 Carlos Gomez (6.7 fWAR)

“Go-Go” certainly endeared himself to fans during his 5+ years in Milwaukee, and the peak of his tenure was in 2013. That year he made the first of two consecutive All-Star appearances for the Brewers and won the first Gold Glove for a Brewer outfielder in team history and first since 1982 when Yount earned one as a shortstop.

Carlos Gomez was all over the team leaderboard in 2013 as he led the Brewers in homers (24), doubles (27), slugging (.506), and OPS (.843) that season and tied for the team lead in triples (10) and runs scored (80). He also finished second on the team in steals (40) and RBI (73).

Right Field: 2019 Christian Yelich (7.8 fWAR)

Yes, Yelich won the National League MVP in 2018. But this team was determined by fWAR, and the Brewer right fielder managed to compile a higher one in 2019, despite playing in 17 less games. That’s the type of performance that can earn one back-to-back MVP awards, but we’re not going to get into that today…

Where do we start? How about the fact that Yelich led the NL in the entire slash line (.329/.429/.671) as well as OPS (1.100), OPS+ (179), and wRC+ (174)? Or perhaps we can add the fact that he had just the tenth 40-30 season ever, even in limited games, when he bashed 44 homers and swiped 30 bags. Yelich did earn an All-Star nod and a Silver Slugger award for his efforts, and that will have to be consolation enough.

Bench Players

Outfield: 2018 Lorenzo Cain (5.7 fWAR)

The first two bench spots were easy. Cain earns the lead spot off the bench as the first representative from the 2018 playoff team. The smooth-fielding center fielder was second to Yelich in fWAR, was seventh to him in the MVP voting, and earned an All-Star bid.

“LoCain” led the Brewers in 2018 with 30 steals and was second on the team behind Yelich in runs scored (90), doubles (25), batting average (.308), and OBP (.395) while also placing second on the team in walks (71). Defensively, Cain was outstanding as well. His 18 defensive runs saved were third in the NL and most of any MLB outfielder, though he would have to wait one more year for his first career Gold Glove.

Catcher: 2019 Yasmani Grandal (5.2 fWAR)

Our All-Decade team needs a backup catcher and Grandal gets the position easily due to the single season he spent in Milwaukee. The backstop was second on the team in fWAR last year behind just Yelich and was one of five Brewers named to the All-Star game in 2019.

Grandal had one of the better eyes at the plate for the Brewers last season, easily pacing the team in walks with 109 and finishing second in the NL in the category. He also finished second on the team in OBP (.380) and third in homers (28), RBI (77), and runs scored (79).

Outfield: 2011 Corey Hart (3.7 fWAR)

The third bench spot, which goes to another outfielder due to lack of infielders with high fWARs, was a tough choice between Hart and 2011 Nyjer Morgan, both of which had great seasons with each finishing with a 3.7 fWAR.

Morgan did give Brewers fans one of the greatest moments in Brewer history that year. But, it’s hard to overlook the fact that Hart led him in OPS (.866 to .778), HR (26 to 4), RBI (63 to 37), and runs scored (80 to 61), thus Hart gets the nod.

Infield: 2018 Travis Shaw (3.6 fWAR)

We still need a backup infielder on our All-Decade team, so how about someone who played first, second, and third base in 2018? The final bench honor goes to Shaw, whose 2018 season just barely edged out his 2017 season for inclusion.

Shaw led the 2018 team in walks with 78 and was third on the team in a number of other categories including slugging percentage (.480), OPS (.825), homers (32), and RBI (86). This all while having a small disruption to his season, switching primarily to second base for the first time in his career after the team acquired third baseman Mike Moustakas at the trade deadline.

The Rotation

2017 Jimmy Nelson (4.8 fWAR)

The ace of our All-Decade staff comes from a team that fell just a game short of the playoffs. That team had a few different starters who put up impressive seasons, but by fWAR, Nelson’s season was easily the best.

Nelson led the 2017 starting staff in FIP (3.05), strikeouts (199), and K/9 (10.2) on his way to a 12-6 record on the year. Unfortunately, a fluke baserunning injury made him miss most of September, though that didn’t stop him from finishing 9th in that year’s NL Cy Young voting.

2010 Yovani Gallardo (3.7 fWAR)

The original “Brewers pitcher who could rake” of the decade, Gallardo capped off the highest fWAR season of his career with an All-Star appearance and, amazingly enough, a Silver Slugger. That’s what happens when you’re a pitcher with a .837 OPS and four dingers.

But let’s not discredit his pitching stats here. He led the starters with a 14-7 record, a 3.84 ERA, a 1.368 WHIP, 9.7 K/9, and 200 strikeouts that year, his second season in a string of four straight with over 200 punchouts. His 3.02 FIP was the lowest of his career.

2012 Zack Greinke (3.4 fWAR)

Though he would be traded to the Angels in late July, Greinke’s partial 2012 season actually eclipsed his performance by fWAR in 2011 that helped lead the Brewers to the postseason. In fact, adding his performance with the Angels would tie him with Nelson for the ace spot in this rotation.

But we’re just focused on his Brewers stats. And though his 3.44 ERA wasn’t stellar, it still led the rotation, as did the win percentage from his 9-3 record, his 2.53 FIP, and his 0.5 HR/9 given up.

2019 Brandon Woodruff (3.3 fWAR)

Watching the beginning of last season when he compiled a 5.81 ERA over his first five starts, you might’ve been surprised that “Woody” would finish the year qualifying for an All-Decade team. But that’s exactly what happened as he cemented his role as staff ace and even grabbed an All-Star appearance in the process.

Woodruff missed almost two full months towards the end of the season with an oblique injury, which limited him to 22 starts. Still, he led the rotation in win percentage with an 11-3 record as well as FIP (3.01), WHIP (1.142), strikeouts (143), and K/9 (10.6).

2017 Chase Anderson (3.2 fWAR)

The final rotation spot goes to another member of the 2017 starting rotation. Though he wasn’t the power type of pitcher that Nelson was, he had an impressive season in his own right, matching Nelson in wins with 12.

Anderson led team starters that year in ERA (2.74), WHIP (1.090), and hits per 9 innings (7.2). He did all he could to pick up the slack once Nelson got injured, going 4-1 down the stretch and giving up one earned run or less in all but one of those outings.

The Bullpen

2017 Corey Knebel (2.8 fWAR)

Knebel broke out in 2017, taking over as Milwaukee’s closer that year and pitching to the highest fWAR of any Brewers reliever of the decade. He likely ends up being our All-Decade team’s closer as well as his 39 saves are easily the most of anyone on the squad.

Knebel’s 14.9 K/9 led all National League qualified relievers in 2017 and placed him third in all of MLB while his 39 saves tied for third in the NL. Meanwhile his K/9, ERA (1.78), and FIP (2.53) led all qualified Brewers pitchers for the year and his WHIP (1.158) was second just behind Anderson.

2018 Josh Hader (2.6 fWAR)

A huge part of the 2018 team’s success revolved around the three-headed monster at the end of the Brewer bullpen. The most effective of those relievers was the fireballer Hader, who burst on to the scene in his second year in the big leagues.

Hader blew away batters to the tune of 15.8 K/9, second best in the majors among qualified relievers, while finishing third among qualified relievers with a 0.811 WHIP. Combine that with a 6-1 record and a 2.43 ERA and you can see why Hader actually managed to finish seventh in the 2018 NL Cy Young voting.

2016 Tyler Thornburg (1.9 fWAR)

Just before he was traded to the Red Sox in the package that netted Milwaukee Travis Shaw among others, Thornburg had his best year as a Brewer. On a team that had multiple relievers with sub-2.00 ERAs, he led all of them at 2.15.

Thornburg also led all qualifying relievers on the team in FIP (2.83), WHIP (0.940), and K/9 (12.1). He was a jack-of-all-trades that year, finishing second on the team with 67 appearances and also picking up 13 saves, largely because he took over the closer’s role at the end of the year when regular closer Jeremy Jeffress was traded to the Rangers.

2018 Jeremy Jeffress (1.7 fWAR)

Jeffress joins Hader as the second All-Star member of the 2018 bullpen and the fourth player overall from that year’s playoff team to make the All-Decade squad. While some fans remember his unfortunately rough postseason, JJ’s regular season performance that season was outstanding.

Jeffress led the team with 73 appearances that season and even took over the closer’s role towards the end of the year after Knebel struggled and spent a short stint in Triple-A. He excelled in both roles and ended up finishing second in the league among qualified relievers with a 1.29 ERA while joining Hader with a sub-1.00 WHIP (0.991).