The Milwaukee Brewers just wrapped up one of the most impressive World Series runs in MLB history. They won 103 regular-season games and then went 11-2 overall in the playoffs, featuring a four-game sweep of the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS and a dominant showing in the Fall Classic against the Rays to earn their first-ever World Series title.
The Brewers were so impressive as a group that I genuinely had no idea who was going to win the World Series MVP award until the final out. Jackson Chourio hit .458. William Contreras had a great showing at the plate and was even better in the field. Cooper Pratt drove in seven runs in five games as a rookie. Aaron Ashby was untouchable all postseason, especially in the World Series. Jacob Misiorowski won both of his starts and allowed just one run in 10.2 innings overall.
Contreras wound up winning the award, and given how well he played all postseason long and how much of a leader of this Brewers team he was, he couldn't be more deserving. How does he compare to other MVP winners, though? Let's dive in.
On one hand, Jeremy Pea deserves some credit for winning the World Series MVP award as a rookie, especially after winning the ALCS MVP the round prior. He, obviously, was a huge reason why the Houston Astros won it all. On the other hand, it's not as if Pea had a signature moment; Yordan Alvarez hit the eventual series-winning home run in Game 6, and other Astros like Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker showed up in a big way offensively.
He was a deserving winner of the award, but it's not like his numbers were that extraordinary, and he didn't have any very memorable moments for non-Astros fans to remember off the top of the head.
Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager | USA TODAY Sports
Corey Seager is one of the best postseason performers in MLB history, so seeing that he won this honor in 2020 isn't a major shock. But what did he do that was particularly memorable in this series? His biggest hit of the series gave L.A. a lead in Game 4 against the Rays, but the Dodgers lost that game.
Seager put up video game-like numbers, slashing .400/.556/.700 with two home runs in the six-game series. But it's not like he was the only one who showed up, either: Justin Turner had an OPS over 1.000, Mookie Betts impressed and Clayton Kershaw pitched well in two Dodgers wins. Seager was a deserving MVP winner, but this also could've easily gone to Turner or Kershaw, and like Pea, he didn't have a huge moment to remember, either.
Now, Contreras' offensive numbers weren't absurd. He went 8-for-21 in the series, good for an impressive .381 average, but he only had one extra-base hit and didn't hit a single home run. Still, Contreras reached base roughly 44 percent of the time, which is quite strong, and as mentioned above, he was more than just a hitter.
Where Contreras really impressed was behind the plate. From challenging what felt like every pitch correctly to throwing out several would-be base-stealers against a prolific running team to guiding his pitching staff to allow just 12 runs across five games, he showed just how valuable defense is behind the dish. His offensive numbers being what they were makes it tough to place him any higher, but he might be the most well-rounded MVP winner on this list, which certainly counts for something.
Boston Red Sox first baseman Steve Pearce | USA TODAY Sports
What's great about a seven-game series is that the sample size is small enough for literally anyone to step up and get hot for a week. Steve Pearce didn't even get hot for a week; he only really showed up in the final two games of the series, going 4-for-8 with three home runs and eight RBI. He tied Game 4 with a home run against Kenley Jansen and gave the Red Sox needed insurance with a three-run double, sparking a win that put Boston up three games to one. He then hit two home runs in the series clincher.
Acquired by the Boston Red Sox a month before the 2018 trade deadline, Pearce wasn't seen as a game-breaking addition at all. He wound up being one of the unlikeliest World Series MVP winners in MLB history. For that, I'd love to rank him higher, but given his no-show in the first three games and the other MVPs on this list, it's tough to do so.
Jorge Soler was only 6-for-20 in the 2021 World Series, which isn't bad by any means, but it's not like a .300 average in six games is lighting the world on fire. Soler won that year's World Series MVP award because three of his six hits were home runs, and all three of them gave the Atlanta Braves a lead. He led off the series with a home run in Game 1, and gave the Braves a lead they wouldn't relinquish in the deciding Game 6 with an absolute moonshot of a three-run homer.
What made Soler's run even more impressive is that he did this on an undermanned Braves team that was without Ronald Acua Jr. and won just 88 regular-season games. Only getting six hits in six games makes it tough to rank him higher, but Soler's World Series was one to remember.
Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg | USA TODAY Sports
For a pitcher to win the World Series MVP award, he has to do something truly extraordinary, as they don't make an impact in every game. Stephen Strasburg only made two starts in the 2019 World Series, but he pitched six innings of two-run ball in Game 2 and then allowed just two runs in 8.1 innings in Game 6 against an absurd Astros lineup.
Four runs in 14.2 innings might not seem so spectacular, but you need to know the context. Both of Strasburg's starts came on the road. Both of Strasburg's starts came in Washington Nationals victories, including a Game 6 victory to knot the series at three games apiece. Also, Max Scherzer was not close to 100 percent, and Patrick Corbin was used out of the bullpen, so the team needed every inning Strasburg could give them. The Nationals do not win this series without Strasburg, which is why the fan base doesn't even care that his ensuing extension aged horribly.
The only player to appear on this list twice, Corey Seager had an outstanding showing in 2020, but while his 2023 numbers were similar, his impact felt far greater. Seager had an OPS over 1.100 and hit three clutch home runs, mainly his game-tying shot in the ninth inning of the series opener off Paul Sewald in a game the Texas Rangers later won in extras.
When the series shifted to Arizona, Seager homered in Games 3 and 4, and broke up a no-hitter to kickstart a rally in Game 5. The series as a whole was comfortably among the worst on this list, but Seager combined huge numbers and massive moments, culminating in an MVP award to remember.
Houston Astros center fielder George Springer | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
I know, I know, George Springer and the Astros cheated their way to a World Series win in 2017. For that, I decided to ding them a bit by ranking his MVP win as No. 3 on this list. I could not go any lower, though, because of how absurdly dominant he was. Not only did Springer hit five home runs in the seven-game series, but he homered in each of the final four contests. It's hard to even compute how insane that is.
It's not as if these were irrelevant homers, either. His seventh-inning blast in Game 5 tied the game. His home run in the 11th inning of Game 2 gave the Astros the lead. Knowing what we know now makes it tough to decide on placement, but Springer's numbers were so beyond impressive that he has to crack the top three.
Freddie Freeman was nowhere near healthy in the 2024 World Series, which is why, when he hit a walk-off Grand Slam to win Game 1, Joe Davis compared his moment to Kirk Gibson's famous walk-off blast in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series. Freeman having that big a moment while practically playing on one leg was impressive enough, but he didn't stop there.
The future Hall of Famer finished the series with four home runs and 12 (!) RBI in just five games. He drove in at least one run in each game and averaged more than two RBI in the series, with many of them coming in clutch moments. It's honestly shocking that Freeman doesn't top the list, but that goes to show how good his teammate was the following year.
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
I don't know how Yoshinobu Yamamoto's 2025 World Series MVP win could ever be topped. Forget the fact that he played an instrumental role in getting the team this far. He was otherworldly in the World Series against a Toronto Blue Jays offense that was firing on all cylinders against just about anybody else that October.
Yamamoto took the ball in Game 2 after the Dodgers were embarrassed to open the series and wound up throwing a complete game, allowing just one run on four hits. With the Dodgers trailing 3-2 in the series, he allowed just one run in six innings to send it to a Game 7. In that deciding game, Yamamoto, on zero days of rest, pitched the final 2.2 innings to secure the series for L.A.
Yamamoto would've won the MVP award without pitching in Game 7, but his ability to pitch as well as he did in that spot on no rest against such a potent offense drives him to the top of this list, and by a wide margin. This was one of the most impressive World Series MVPs ever.
This article was originally published on www.fansided.com as Where William Contreras ranks among the last 10 World Series MVPs .
