The stats that show how much the Brewers have improved since mid-May

With the All-Star Break now in the rearview mirror, the Milwaukee Brewers are set to begin the second half of the season in just a few hours, and a date with the Los Angeles Dodgers is on the horizon. The Dodgers were one of the two teams that suffered a three-game sweep to the Brewers in the last two series before the break.

It was a rare year where the Crew would have probably preferred to keep playing baseball, rather than take four days off, given just how good they were playing in the final weeks of the first half of the season. Regardless, the rest was probably welcomed for Pat Murphy's high-effort squad, and they now set their attention to a playoff push that is sure to be entertaining.

The Brewers enter play on Friday 1.0 game back of the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central, 1.5 games back of the Dodgers for the best record in the entire NL, and 1.5 games clear of the New York Mets for the top Wild Card spot. However, things weren't always this exciting. If you recall, two weeks into May, the Crew looked destined for a season of mediocrity.

On Sunday, May 17, the Brewers posted a second-straight shutout loss to the Minnesota Twins, dropping their record to 21-25 and falling to fourth in the NL Central. However, that fateful day in May also turned out to be an inflection point for the Milwaukee Brewers. Since that day, they have looked like a completely different ball club. Here's just how impressively they turned things around.

Power and pitching are to thank for the Brewers’ first-half turnaround

First, the offense. Through their loss to the Twins on May 17, the Brewers, as a team, posted a .652 OPS due in large part to their below-average slugging percentage of just .346. From May 18 to their final game of the first half — an 8-1 win over the Washington Nationals — the Brewers' offense posted a .756 OPS with a .417 slugging percentage. The Crew played 46 games before May 17 and hit 37 homers during that span; they've played 50 games since and slugged 56 homers in that time frame. The team's ground ball rate has decreased by 3.5%, and they are pulling the ball roughly 3% more of the time as well. Those might sound like small numbers, but less than a 10% difference separates the best and worst offenses in baseball in each of those categories.

The turnaround is in large part due to Christian Yelich's ridiculous last two months. His post-May 17 slugging percentage is more than 200 points higher than it was during the 46 games prior, and he is striking out nearly 5% less of the time. His seven home runs before May 17 were more than respectable, but his 12 since have Brewers fans remembering the Yelich of 2018-19, who seemingly hit an extra-base hit every other at-bat. Like his team as a whole, Yelich’s ground ball rate has decreased significantly since May 17, but interestingly enough, his pull rate is more than 10% less from May 17 on than it was before the inflection point. If there's one thing Brewers fans know about their superstar, it's that when he's going well, Yelich displays impressive power to all fields.

While the Brewers pitching staff has been generally solid all season, they've been on another tier since May 17. Prior to May 17, the staff as a whole held an ERA of 4.19. Since then, they've allowed exactly one run less a game with an ERA of 3.19. One run makes a huge difference for a team that is generally locked into tight contests. Additionally, their strikeout rate is nearly more than 4% higher, and their walk rate is 2% lower since May 17 than they were during the first 46 games of the season.

When it comes to the pitching staff, two names are largely to thank for the turnaround at the quarter-mark of the season: Quinn Priester and Jacob Misiorowski. Priester was sitting on a 4.59 ERA on May 17; an inflated walk rate and slugging percentage of .416 by opposing batters that were much to blame. However, since that day, Priester has maintained a dazzling 2.93 ERA through his last 10 starts, with a strikeout rate that has improved by more than 5%, a walk rate that is down nearly 10%, and a ridiculous ground ball rate of 60%. In just two short months, Priester has gone from having his rotation spot in jeopardy to someone who might force the Brewers to turn to a six-man rotation when Nestor Cortes returns.

And how can you not talk about Jacob Misiorowski? Debuting nearly a month after May 17, The Miz has still had a major impact on the Brewers' pitching staff. With a 2.81 ERA through his first five starts, Misiorowski has been more than two runs better than who he replaced in the rotation: Aaron Civale. Perhaps the most impressive stat by The Miz is despite having an 11.2% walk rate, which is higher than you would hope but the lowest of Miz's professional career, the rookie sensation still has a WHIP of 0.90 — it helps when you collect the same number of wins and hits allowed in your first three MLB starts.

Finally, a huge part of the Brewers’ mid-May U-turn has been the additions of Aaron Ashby and DL Hall to the bullpen. Both Ashby and Hall cover multiple innings at a time, giving much-needed days off to the rest of the Brewers bullpen that was one of the most overworked through the first quarter of the 2025 season. Ashby, who returned to the Brewers’ roster on May 23, holds a 1.66 ERA through 21.2 innings pitched, and Hall, who returned on May 26, sports a 2.38 ERA while covering 22.2 innings.

As a team, the Crew is 35-15 since May 17. They look to keep things rolling in Los Angeles tonight. The aforementioned Priester will take the bump for the Brewers tonight with Tyler Glasnow going for the defending champions. Milwaukee faced Glasnow in his return from the IL last Wednesday, and collected just one unearned run on the 2024 All-Star. First pitch is set for 9:10 p.m. CT.