Who would have won NLDS MVP for the Brewers this year if MLB handed out the award

The Milwaukee Brewers defeated the San Diego Padres three games to one in the NLDS, with all four contests being decided by two runs or fewer. Offense was hard to come by throughout the series, as Milwaukee managed just 13 total runs compared to San Diego’s nine.

However, both teams delivered several incredible defensive plays that kept runs off the board. None proved more clutch than Garrett Mitchell’s eighth-inning home run robbery in Game 4, which took a potential game-tying homer away from Manny Machado, and allowed Milwaukee to close out the series just four outs later.

Pitching was certainly the biggest strength of the Brewers during their NLDS win over the Padres, highlighted by a brilliant performance from Milwaukee's relief group which allowed just one earned run in 19 innings. Paired with that excellent pitching performance, the Brewers scratched across just enough runs to close out the Padres before a winner-takes-all Game 5, and one Brewers bat accounted for nearly half of the team’s total runs, Jackson Chourio.

MLB doesn't hand out series MVP awards during the Division Series, which is too bad because Erik Kratz very well may have won the award back in 2018. Rather, the league reserves the bestowment of a series MVP award for the Championship Series and, of course, the World Series. However, if MLB did hand out NLDS MVP awards, Chourio's heroics almost certainly would have earned him the honor.

Jackson Chourio was the MVP of Brewers' memorable NLDS win over the Padres

Across the four games of the NLDS, Chourio was the driving force of the Brewers’ offense, leading the team with six RBI, stealing Ryan Braun's franchise record for the most total postseason RBI in the process. Chourio had at least one RBI in every contest; he launched a game-tying, two-run homer in Game 1, drove in the game-tying and winning run with a walk-off two-RBI single in Game 2, added a sacrifice fly in Game 3, and came through with a go-ahead RBI single in the fifth inning of the series finale.

Although he collected only three hits in the series, he did run into some tough luck as he was one of several Brewers robbed of extra bases by Padres' centerfielder Jackson Merrill in Game 3. Furthermore, he only struck out once and was consistently making hard contact. That, paired with his RBI production and ability to come through in the biggest moments, makes him Milwaukee’s MVP of the 2026 NLDS.

Beyond Chourio, several Brewers stepped up with significant contributions that proved vital in taking down the Padres. William Contreras led Milwaukee with six hits, including a pair of home runs that came in crucial moments. His first was a go-ahead blast in the seventh inning of Game 1 at home, while his second provided Milwaukee’s first run of Game 3 on the road in San Diego.

Christian Yelich also chipped in with five hits and two ninth-inning stolen bases. One of those steals came in Game 2 as he was the first runner on base before Chourio’s walk-off hit against Mason Miller. Yelich also drew two walks, helping him finish the series tied with Jake Bauers for the team’s highest on-base percentage at .471.

On the pitching side, Aaron Ashby led the Brewers with 5.2 innings of scoreless work, and allowed just two hits and two walks while striking out five. Closer Trevor Megill converted both of his save opportunities while allowing just one baserunner across 3.1 innings. Abner Uribe was the only reliever to appear in all four games and did so without allowing an earned run.

All together, these contributions proved crucial to Milwaukee’s success throughout the series. However, Chourio’s performance stood out among the rest, and would have certainly earned him the NLDS MVP award. Chourio's clutch walk-off single in Game 2 truly changed the course of the series. Without it, the Brewers may very well be staring down a volatile, winner-takes-all Game 5. Instead, they are resting up for their NLCS rematch with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

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