Former Brewers backup off to strong start in 2026 after Milwaukee gave up on him last year

At 20-30, the San Francisco Giants are about as far away from relevancy as you can be in May. Sure, it doesn't help that they play in the same division as the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers, but it's also their own fault that basically every notable veteran on the roster, including Willy Adames, is grossly underperforming expectations.

Ah, but what's that old adage? I believe it went something like "When one former Milwaukee Brewer falters, another is sure to rise."

That's my masterful segue into informing you that former Brewers catcher Eric Haase is not only back in the league with the Giants -- he's also mashing the baseball again.

Thanks to the Giants' youthful and defensively questionable catching situation (following their shocking trade of Patrick Bailey), Haase may yet get a chance to start playing on a regular basis for the first time since he played in Detroit.

With Gary Sánchez in tow, Brewers fans can safely root for Eric Haase's success

Though Haase only has nine games of data to sift through, he's doing what we've all come to expect from him: lots of power, lots of strikeouts, and some quality defense. His .560 slugging percentage is in the same area code as his 2024 debut in Milwaukee (.515), and he's struck out seven times in 25 trips to the plate. That's a better pace than the 40% strikeout rates he posted with the Brewers, but you're splitting hairs at that point.

His stellar defense is the real asset the Brewers are missing, but they willingly passed on him multiple times in recent years in favor of veterans Danny Jansen and Gary Sánchez. It's only fair that he got a shot to thrive elsewhere.

And, for what it's worth, Sánchez's 128 wRC+ perfectly matches Haase's output in 2026 (albeit with a drastic difference in sample size). Sánchez isn't nearly as good behind the plate as the former Crew member, but he's passable enough to play there once in a while. It also helps that he's backing up William Contreras, perhaps the most durable catcher in the sport.

With Jeferson Quero also finally breaking major-league ground earlier this year, the Brewers' short- and long-term plans are well-positioned to succeed in a post-Haase world. If his early success with the Giants is any indication, perhaps a breakup was best for both parties. At least now we can cheer for his homers without having to survive his many, many punchouts in between.

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