Why Ryan Braun is on the Brewers' Mount Rushmore for the past 25 years

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Why Ryan Braun is on the Brewers' Mount Rushmore for the past 25 years

With MLB Draft soon, here are the Brewers' first-round picks all-time — Milwaukee Brewers' Ryan Braun celebrates after hitting a walk-off grand slam home run in the 10th inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Miller Park Thursday, September 25, 2008.

Curt Hogg, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel · Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Sun, Mar 22, 2026 ·

3 min read

Ryan Braun

At the tail end of the most anticipated group of homegrown prospects the Milwaukee Brewers have ever seen came Ryan Braun .

Drafted fifth overall in 2005, it didn't take long for Braun to make an impact. He was named the National League's rookie of the year in 2007 despite playing in only 113 games, slugging 34 home runs and batting .324. He led the league in hits the next year, was named the most valuable player in 2011 while tops in OPS at .994 (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage), then led the league in OPS again in 2012 (.987). Through his first six years, Braun hit 202 homers, stole 126 bases, batted .313 and was a five-time all-star.

No player in Brewers history has had a greater penchant for delivering in the clutch. Braun's home run on the final day of the 2008 regular season sent the Brewers to the playoffs for the first time since 1982 – and came mere days after he hit a walk-off grand slam. His late homer clinched a division title, the first in 29 years, in 2011. Even late in his career, Braun delivered some of the most memorable swings in recent years, including an eighth-inning go-ahead homer against Detroit on the final weekend of the 2018 regular season as Milwaukee made a furious run to claim the division again, and a go-ahead grand slam in the ninth inning at St. Louis in September 2019 with the Brewers surging for a playoff spot.

Braun is the all-time franchise leader in home runs. He's third in WAR (win above replacement), hits, runs scored, stolen bases and OPS. In 2024 Braun was inducted into the Brewers walk of fame. Naturally, that should make him a shoo-in for this list.

Ben Sheets of the Milwaukee Brewers watches during batting practice for the 2008 MLB All-Star game July 14, 2008, at Yankee Stadium.

(Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Milwaukee Brewers left fielder Ryan Braun (8) celebrates with third base coach Ed Sedar after hitting a home run against the Detroit Tigers on Sept. 28, 2018, at Miller Park.

(Jeff Hanisch / USA TODAY Sports)

Prince Fielder and the Milwaukee Brewers celebrate the game winner against the Giants at Miller Park on June 27, 2009.

(Tom Lynn / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers center fielder Christian Yelich runs into the outfield after scoring the winning run in the Milwaukee Brewers' 3-2 win over the Colorado Rockies in Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Colorado Rockies on Oct. 4, 2018, at Miller Park.

(RIck Wood / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Ben Sheets leaves the game for the last time as a Brewer after giving up 4 runs in 2 1/3 innings against the Chicago Cubs on Sept. 27, 2008, at Miller Park.

(Benny Sieu / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers Prince Fielder gives Ryan Braun a high-five after Braun's two-run home off the Houston Astros' Geoff Geary in their game at Miller Park in Milwaukee July 26, 2008

(JACK ORTON / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Ben Sheets reacts after the final out of a five-hit shutout against the San Diego Padres on Sept. 6, 2008.

(Rick Wood / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Prince Fielder celebrates his two-run homer run with a high fives agianst the St. Louis Cardinals on June 12, 2011, at Miller Park.

(Tom Lynn / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers right fielder Christian Yelich hits a solo home run during the first inning of their National League Championship Series baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Oct. 20, 2018, at Miller Park.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers right fielder Christian Yelich rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the first inning of their National League Championship Series game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Oct. 20, 2018, at Miller Park. Looking on is Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Max Muncy.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers right fielder Christian Yelich celebrates his home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series on Oct. 20, 2018, at Miller Park.

(Rick Wood / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Ben Sheets shouts after giving up a walk to the Pittsburgh Pirates as Brewer catcher Jason Kendall talks with him on July 4, 2008, at Miller Park.

(Joe Koshollek / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers left fielder Christian Yelich hits a double against the Chicago Cubs during their National League Division Series game Oct. 8, 2025, at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers' Ryan Braun flexes his muscles after hitting a walk-off grand slam home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 10th inning at Miller Park on Sept. 25, 2008.

(Benny Sieu / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

The Brewers' Ryan Braun celebrates after hitting a walk-off grand slam home run in the 10th inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sept. 25, 2008, at Miller Park.

(Benny Sieu / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers' Ryan Braun jumps into the arms of teammates after a walk-off grand slam home run against the Pirates in the 10th inning Sept. 25, 2008, at Miller Park.

(BENNY SIEU / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

The Milwaukee Brewers' Prince Fielder hits a solo home run against the Colorado Rockies on Sept. 13, 2011, at Miller Park.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewer pitcher Ben Sheets applauds after the final out in the 10th inning of a Brewer 4-3 win over the Chicago Cubs on opening day of the 2008 season March 31 at Wrigley Field.

(Benny Sieu / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun addresses the media during a news conference, Feb. 24, 2012, in Phoenix, a day after his 50-game suspension for a positive drug test was overturned by an arbitrator.

(Roy Dabner)

Milwaukee Brewers Ryan Braun, left, and Christian Yelich chat before the Milwaukee Brewers National League Divisional Series game against the Colorado Rockies on Oct. 4, 2018.

(Mike De Sisti / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Milwaukee Brewers' Ben Sheets pitches against the Houston Astros on Aug. 19, 2008, at Miller Park.

(Benny Sieu / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Christian Yelich is checked out by the medical staff after a ball deflected off his leg in a game Sept. 10, 2019, against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park.

(Mark Brown/Getty Images)

Milwaukee Brewers Christian Yelich leaves the interview room on crutches after he spoke during a news conference at Miller Park on Sept. 16, 2019. It was the first time Yelich spoke publicly about his injury that occurred on Sept. 10 when he fouled a pitch off his right knee that broke his kneecap during a game against the Miami Marlins, ending his 2019 season.

(Mike De Sisti/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Prince Fielder and the Milwaukee Brewers celebrate after he singled in the winning run against the Giants on June 27, 2009, at Miller Park.

(Tom Lynn / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

But, ah yes, the performance-enhancing drug scandal that hovers over his career like a March cloud in Milwaukee.

Not only did a positive test for incredibly high levels of synthetic testosterone during the 2011 playoffs add some messiness to Braun's career, but the overall ugly fallout exacerbated matters.

In February 2012, a day after an arbitration panel overturned Braun's 50-game suspension for a failed drug test, he held a press conference at the Brewers' complex in Phoenix and brashly exonerated himself. He levied criticism on the sample collector and said, "I would bet my life that this substance never entered my body at any point."

Of course, this all backfired on Braun when he was slammed with a 65-game suspension in 2013 for his involvement with the Biogenesis clinic in Miami . His reputation in and around the game was effectively tarnished.

Yet in Milwaukee, Braun remained a fan favorite through the end of his career, all of which was spent with the Brewers. When he returned to officially announce his retirement in 2021, then again to enter the walk of fame three years later, he was met with booming ovations.

So, yes, you can't get around the PED saga when discussing Braun's career, but how can you get around the countless big hits and 14 years' worth of memories?

If we get back to the ultimate question for this exercise – you cannot tell the story of the Brewers in the Miller Park/American Family Field era without which four players? – there is simply no way to tell that tale without No. 8.