Brewers embodied Harvey's Wallbangers to secure World Series trip over behemoth Dodgers

“Lined to Yount at short, he throws, it’s over! The Brewers have won the American League pennant! Milwaukee, you have a World Series! Thousands of people streaming onto the field at County Stadium. It is absolute pandemonium!”

That was the radio call from Dwayne Mosley when the Milwaukee Brewers last won the pennant and advanced to the World Series back in 1982. 44 years later, the Brewers are returning to the World Series after knocking off the mighty Los Angeles Dodgers, whom the baseball world believed were destined for their third-consecutive title. With a victory in Game 4 of the 2026 NLCS, the Brewers swept the mighty Dodgers and won their first National League pennant since joining the senior circuit in 1998.

Though separated by more than four decades, there are a lot of similarities between the 2026 Brewers' performance during the postseason and the 1982 club, who earned the nickname "Harvey's Wallbangers" due to their hard-hitting ways, and the success that manager Harvey Kuehn had after taking over halfway through the season. Those similarities might come as a surprise to fans who are familiar with the 2026 Brewers' offensive identity. Known not for their power, but rather their ability to manufacture runs by getting on base, putting the ball in play, and wreaking havoc on the basepaths, Pat Murphy's squad hit the second-fewest home runs (154) in all of MLB during the regular season. That's a far cry from Kuehn's power-laden lineup, which crushed an MLB-leading 216 homers over the course of the '82 campaign.

However, in the postseason, Murphy's group has looked far more similar to Harvey's Wallbangers than the "small ball squad" they were during the course of the regular season. In fact, since the start of the 2026 postseason, the Brewers have crushed more homers (10) than any other team. That power is a key reason why the Brewers are returning to the Fall Classic for the first time since 1982.

Brewers power their way to sweep of mighty Dodgers in NLCS, advance to World Series for first time since 1982

The Brewers scored their first four runs of Game 4 without the benefit of a home run. However, after tying the game at 4-4 despite Shohei Ohtani crushing what seemed to be a momentum-shifting three-run homer in the second inning, the Brewers' biggest swing of the game was a go-ahead solo homer off the bat of Garrett Mitchell in the top of the sixth. Mitchell, who homered off Cy Young southpaw Blake Snell last night, crushed his go-ahead homer in Game 4 off of All-Star left-handed reliever Tanner Scott.

In each of the Brewers' four consecutive wins over the Dodgers in the NLCS, homers played a key role. Brice Turang popped a game-tying solo homer off Tarik Skubal in Game 1, which proved to be pivotal after the Brewers won the series opener by one run. William Contreras followed with a game-tying homer in Game 2, which was integral to the back-and-forth contest that ultimately fell the Brewers;' way. Then, in Game 3, a trio of homers, including a leadoff homer from Jackson Chourio, and then back-to-back seventh-inning longballs from Jake Bauers and Mitchell supplied the Brewers' first four runs. Finally, in Game 4, it was Mitchell's go-ahead solo shot and David Hamilton's insurance-building ninth-inning homer that led the Brewers to an incredible comeback win to complete the sweep.

Pair that impressive power output in the NLCS with the three homers the Brewers crushed in the NLDS, and Milwaukee has a total of 10 four-baggers through their first eight games of the 2026 postseason. Harvey's Wallbangers hit 10 homers in 12 games during their 1982 postseason run. A team not known for putting the ball over the fence, channeled the spirit of the last team in franchise history that made it to the Fall Classic, and the result is a trip back to the World Series.

Milwaukee, once again, you have a World Series.

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