The Milwaukee Brewers have never done this before.
They have made a World Series, although that was back when they played in the American League.
But the way they’ve started the National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers is brand new, historic for this franchise that has existed for more than a half-century.
The Brewers lead the Dodgers two games to none.
Let’s explain what makes that so notable.
Brewers Make History
This is the first time that the Brewers have ever held a 2-0 lead in a League Championship Series, according to The Athletic’s Jayson Stark.
But it’s also the first time they’ve led a best-of-seven series by any two-game margin, not just 2-0.
“Never, in any of their 57 seasons in Milwaukee, has a Brewers team led a League Championship Series (in either league) by two games,” Stark writes. “Not 2-0. Not 3-1. Not 4-2. Not ever. In fact, a Brewers team has never led any best-of-seven postseason series by two games. Never. Until now. That is such a wild fact, for a franchise that has been around for over half a century, that I wasn’t even sure the members of this team would believe it.”
Later in his article, Stark quoted multiple players, who basically appreciated that they’re up 2-0 but also gave the standard athlete answer that there’s still work to be done.
And that’s certainly true. But it also emphasizes how special this Brewers team is.
There have been a lot of good ballclubs in the Brewers’ history, a lot of good players, a lot of key moments — but they’ve never quite been in this position before.
Unlike Last Year
The Brewers got to this stage last year, too. They met the Dodgers in the NLCS.
But they didn’t go up 2-0. They didn’t go up at all.
The Dodgers swept the Brewers right out of the playoffs en route to a repeat World Series title.
It had to be humbling and painful for a Milwaukee team that had put together such a good regular season only to be stifled like that.
The defeat brought about all the discourse you could imagine about how the Brewers’ style of play simply wasn’t equipped to work in the playoffs.
But how about now? The Brewers sure seem to be operating just fine in this postseason.
The Dodgers are formidable and will get the next three games at Dodger Stadium, so everything could change.
But the Brewers are already in a place that they as a franchise have never been before with this 2-0 lead. They might as well keep making more history.
Brewers Make Never-Before-Done History in NLCS