This article was written by Jason Foster and published on Sport & State, a new media company founded by Clay Travis that is built around sports, culture, original voices, and live conversation.
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When the Brewers secured the final out in Game 4 of the NLCS on Thursday to complete a shocking sweep of the two-time defending champion Dodgers, it was literally a generational event.
The 27th out that punched Milwaukee’s ticket to the World Series came 43 years, 11 months and 26 days since it last played in the Fall Classic. That was a Game 7 loss to the Cardinals in 1982. None of the current Brewers had been born, and neither had many of their current fans. But now, both can revel in a moment that took forever to get here, but is certainly worth the wait.
YOUR MILWAUKEE BREWERS ARE HEADING TO THE WORLD SERIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! https://t.co/9wrVOIy54p
— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) October 16, 2026
The chase for the first championship in franchise history begins Oct. 23 in Game 1 at American Family Field. You’ll have to forgive the city of Milwaukee if people there have forgotten what it’s like.
The last time they hosted a World Series game, Ronald Reagan was a first-term president, “E.T.” was the top movie at the box office and a gallon of gas was $1.26.
There are also pretty interesting differences — and ironies — between the current Milwaukee team and the one 44 years its senior.
The ’82 Brewers featured five future Hall of Famers in Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, Ted Simmons, Don Sutton and Rollie Fingers, and were collectively known as “Harvey’s Wallbangers,” a nod to manager Harvey Kuenn and the team’s propensity to crush dingers. They led the majors with 216 homers and a .790 OPS, and far outscored every other team on their way to an MLB-best 95 wins. They were very much a 2026 type of team.
The actual 2026 Brewers don’t have any household names (yet), but they do have plenty of talent. With NLCS MVP Jake Bauers (26 homers, .874 OPS), Jackson Chourio (25 homers, .837 OPS), William Contreras (1.157 OPS this postseason) and others, they present an annoyingly tenacious lineup that’s closer to something out of 1982.
They had an MLB-best .341 on-base percentage and more hits than anyone else (1,422). They take walks. They’re patient. They bunt. They keep the line moving and wear opponents out.
But they can slug, too, as they demonstrated by out-homering the Dodgers 7-1 over the four games of the NLCS. Still, their 154 regular-season homers ranked as MLB’s second-lowest total, which isn’t supposed to be consistent with winning these days. But they still scored more runs than all but one MLB team (Cubs), which illustrates the thorough nature of their offensive attack. It certainly helps that they had the second-lowest ERA in baseball (3.51), led by NL Cy Young frontrunner Jacob Misiorowski and his MLB-best 1.80 ERA.
It’s not quite accurate to call the 2026 Brewers a throwback team, but they at least pay homage. They’re a multi-faceted bunch, which is why they compiled an MLB-best 103 wins this season before going 7-1 through the first two rounds of the postseason.
GARRETT MITCHELL!
THE BREWERS HAVE COME ALL THE WAY BACK TO TAKE THE LEAD! https://t.co/dOx9zZUHT7
— MLB (@MLB) October 16, 2026
Spicy matchup awaits
The Brewers are a unique kind of juggernaut, one that did away with the supposedly unstoppable Dodgers rather easily and offers Milwaukee its best chance to be the last team standing for the first time ever. For that reason, the Brewers and their fans won’t love the seven-day wait between the NLCS and Game 1 of the World Series.
But at least they’ll have something to do: They can all watch the rest of the ALCS to see whether the Rays or Guardians will stand between them and the Commissioner’s Trophy.
Either team will present the Brewers with the same kind of challenge they pose to everyone else, that throwback-y style of play that can just as easily beat you with homers or a barrage of walks, singles and a well-time double down the line. It has the potential to be one of the more entertaining World Series in recent memory, so get ready for a fun ride.
The calendar says 2026, but the Brewers are about to party like it’s 1982 — just with a different ending in mind.
