The Milwaukee Brewers have made the World Series for the first time since 1982 and enter the series as the favorite against the Tampa Bay Rays. One of the most fun aspects of the series is that both teams are vying for their first-ever World Series title. While the Rays, in their 29th season of existence, have played in the World Series twice since 2008, the Brewers are in the Fall Classic for just the second time in franchise history and the first since joining the National League in 1998.
Why could this finally be the year for the Brewers (other than that they're awesome)? Let's dive in with the three biggest reasons. At 832 runs in 162 games (5.14 runs per game), the Brewers ranked second in the majors in the regular season in scoring.
In any way you can imagine. The Brewers were first in batting average (.258) and on-base percentage (.341), which is a killer combination. Though they didn't rank highly in home runs (154, tied for 28th), they were fifth in doubles (279) and sixth in triples (26).
They flash speed on the bases, sitting fifth in stolen bases (162). You'll hear plenty in this series about "small ball" (mostly because the two teams are known as small-market ballclubs and it's a convenient talking point) and the Brewers were fifth in sac bunts (37). The Brewers are a "little things" team.
They don't beat themselves and find ways to excel on the margins. In addition to the bunting and base-stealing, they rarely hit into double plays. Also, there's been plenty of talk about the lack of home runs, and it's true that the Brewers finished tied for 28th in homers as a team this season.
That doesn't mean there's a total void of power. Some of the issues were early in the season. The Brewers slugged .430 in September, compared to .398 before the All-Star break.
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