This Brewer caught fire at the exact right time ahead of 2025 MLB Playoffs

The MLB Playoffs are finally here. With the marathon of the regular season wrapped up, and the Wild Card Series already underway, the Milwaukee Brewers are enjoying some much-needed time off. Despite a slow start from some key veterans and a myriad of injuries, Milwaukee was able to shake the cobwebs of April and May, and ultimately earn the top overall seed in the MLB playoffs.

The World Series would ultimately run through Milwaukee, should the Brewers keep up their winning ways. Of course, there is a long way between now and then, but Milwaukee is in as good of a position to advance through the postseason as they have been over this current "Golden Age" of Brewers baseball. They have a dynamic pitching staff, a number of guys just beginning to tap into their star potential, and a few leaders who will earn MVP votes.

Of course, on top of all that, most champions do have a folk hero type, who shows up in the postseason, when the lights are brightest, and takes that team over the top. While fans often remember David Freese in Game 6 of the World Series, helping the St. Louis Cardinals fend off elimination, Brewers fans will also remember Freese hit for a sweltering .545 average in the 2011 NLCS against Milwaukee, including 3 HR and 9 RBI en route to an NLCS MVP Award prior to winning the World Series MVP.

Danny Jansen is heating up at the perfect time

All these years later, Milwaukee may have found their own diamond in the rough in the form of Danny Jansen. The Brewers went out and got Wisconsin native Jansen at the deadline to serve as a backup to William Contreras. While at one time, it was maybe just a cool homecoming story, a backup catcher with some pop in exchange for a redundant prospect, Jansen is fast becoming an offensive threat for the Brewers.

Since the team acquired Jansen, he has been playing rather sparingly, appearing in just 25 games over the final two months of the season. That is unlikely to change anytime soon; William Contreras is and will continue to be the starting man for the Crew. However, "Wild Bill" has playing through a couple of injuries, and having a backup with playoff experience certainly helps.

In those 25 games since joining the Crew, Jansen is slashing .254/.346/.433 with 3 HR and 7 RBI. It is important to note that 2 of those 3 HR have occurred in the final week of the season, one in San Diego, and another at home against the Cincinnati Reds in the regular season finale. For the month of September, Jansen hit .303 in 12 games. He is known to go on impressive hot streaks throughout his career, and his performance at the end of the regular season indicated that one was just beginning.

While many "experts" are indicating that the Brewers’ lack of home runs is the biggest question mark ahead of the postseason, having Jansen catch fire in the final month of the regular season certainly gives Milwaukee options. Jansen could serve as a late-game pinch hitter, who is very capable of providing some pop when needed, or could even allow Contreras to serve as designated hitter in a game or two. However, in doing so, the rest of the Brewers' lineup would be significantly impacted. Therefore, while Pat Murphy should find a way to get Jansen a few at-bats in October, the perfect situation may be hard to come by.