ST. PETERSBURG, FL - OCTOBER 28: William Contreras #24 of the Milwaukee Brewers receives the Willie Mays World Series Most Valuable Player Award after the Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in Game Five of the 2026 World Series presented by Capital One at Tropicana Field on Wednesday, October 28, 2026 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Zach Koenig·SB Nation
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3 min read
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For the first time in the history of the franchise, the Milwaukee Brewers are champions of Major League Baseball. Somewhere, Bob Uecker is smiling down from thosegreat cheap seats in the sky.
The Brew Crew certainly deserve a lot of praise for theirdemolition runthrough the postseason bracket. After procuring a bye and home field advantage, they proceeded to…
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Dispatch a solid San Diego Padres squad in the NLDS
Sweep the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS
Down go the reigning champs! (Photo by Keith Birmingham/MediaNews Group/Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images) | MediaNews Group via Getty Images
Dismantle the American League's clear top team—Tampa Bay Rays—in the Fall Classic
Yet, from a Twins fan perspective, the most interesting facet of Milwaukee's mow-down was how the community came together to support the team at home and on the road.
One would be hard pressed to find more electric crowds than what showed up at AmFam Field in October. They even basically sold the place out just for fans to watch road games on the scoreboard! Perhaps most impressive was the complete and utter takeover of Tropicana Field (some 1,100 miles from MIL) for games 3-5 of the World Series. Based on crowd noise/reaction, one would have thought these home games for the Suds.
Brew Crew Trop takeover! (Photo by Mike Carlson/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
I have no special affinity nor malice towards the Brewers. Bud Selig canno longer hurt usand I don't hold their cheesehead-ian pigskin proclivities against them in this context. Despite geographic proximity, aTwins/Brewers"rivalry" has never really developed (even when both were in the AL). Yet, our neighbors to the east can be a good litmus test for how MN baseball is doing—an exam currently being flunked in two significant aspects:
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Bypopulation density, Milwaukee is the smallest baseball market. Yes, significantly smaller than even our Twin Cities. Yet, MIL outspent MIN in total 2026 payroll: $146,706,320 to $115,748,036 (according toSpotrac). "Not great, Bob" to quote the infamous Mad Men line.
Brewers owner Mark Attanasio seems to understand the deep local commitment to his product. Without a doubt, James Fillmore could tell us the ways Attanasio is angling for taxpayer money. But at a basic level, he hasn't fallen into the never-ending (andself-fulfilling) death trap of letting poor attendance justify measly payrolls. For close to a decade now, the Brewers have at least put a competitive product on the field per their market realities.
I want a parade. (Photo by Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
It all paid off for The 414 in a 2026 championship—and will certainly continue to pay dividends (literal and figurative) in thenear future. If Twins ownership ever wants a blueprint for how to build fan interest and competitive squads, a gaze over the St. Croix river is all it would take.
