The Milwaukee Brewers' memorable 2025 season comes to a demoralizing end

2025 was one of the most memorable seasons in Milwaukee Brewers' history, so of course it would end in the most disappointing playoff performance the franchise has ever seen.

After the most regular season wins in franchise history, the longest-winning streak the Brewers have ever seen, and potentially the most satisfying postseason series win Milwaukee has ever completed -- a thrilling NLDS victory over their arch rivals, the Chicago Cubs -- the Brew Crew didn't stand a chance in the NLCS. Facing what is arguably the most talented team ever assembled, and undoubtedly the most expensive team in MLB history (when including Shohei Ohtani's deferred payments) in the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Brewers lost four straight games when it mattered most.

Outside of a ninth-inning threat in Game 1, the Brewers never even made things interesting in their NLCS loss to the defending champion Dodgers. From historically bad offensive performances to heroic showings from the Dodgers' collection of All-Stars, what could have been an exciting David vs. Goliath story for the Brewers became a lopsided victory for Los Angeles.

It was capped off by the best performance by a single player in postseason history. In Game 4 on Friday night, not only did Ohtani toss six scoreless innings of two-hit baseball with 10 strikeouts, but he also slugged three towering home runs. His first homer led off the night for the Dodgers' offense, the second traveled 469 feet, nearly leaving Dodger Stadium altogether, and the third served as the dagger, coming off of All-Star closer Trevor Megill in the seventh inning.

Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers eliminate Brewers from 2025 postseason with four-game sweep in NLCS

Tipping the cap doesn't even do justice to the performance that Ohtani turned in tonight. Simply put, no baseball player has ever done what the Dodgers' 700 million dollar man did tonight. And for the unfortunate Brewers, who were on the wrong side of history, it's another installment in what has been a long string of playoff disappointments.

After one of the most exciting wins in franchise history last Saturday, a Game 5 win over the Cubs that sent the Brewers to their first NLCS since 2018, the brand of baseball that Milwaukee played this week was shocking to say the least. Yes, they ran into four buzzsaws in the Dodgers' starting rotation, but fans, and the entire baseball world for that matter, certainly expected a closer fight than a four-game sweep in which the Brewers scored just one run in each game.

The Brewers' NLCS performance was certainly not indicative of who they were as a ballclub in 2025. A team known for their ability to overcome adversity and fight through challenges showed very little resilience in their matchup with the Dodgers. Chalk it up to the Dodgers' historic roster, to the discrepancy in payrolls, or simply a cold week from the Brewers' offense, but the 2025 squad deserves more than to be judged purely based on four games in October.

But that's baseball. And every year 29 teams enter the offseason after coming up short of their ultimate goal. The grueling six-month season, in which each a team endures countless ups and downs, often comes to an abrupt end. Milwaukee extended that end by an extra week and knocked off their division rivals in the most satisfying fashion, but the quest for the first World Series championship in franchise history continues for the Brewers.