Can the Brewers make this a September to remember — again?
The Milwaukee Brewers got off to a good start in the last month of the 2019 season with a 4-0 shutout of the Chicago Cubs on September 1. The Brew Crew is four games behind the Cubs for the second Wild Card spot and a return to the post-season.
The Brewers will need an outstanding September to make the playoffs this year. With 25 games in the month, the Crew may need to put together a 20-win month to take one of the two Wild Card spots in the National League (or even overtake the Cards and Cubs and win the N.L. Central).
Fortunately for the Brewers, September has been a good month for the team over the past three seasons. In fact, they have the third-best September record in the majors over the past three seasons (2016-18) and have the best winning percentage of all National League teams over that same period. The Brewers had a .619 winning percentage in September games from 2016-18.
Here’s a look at the September/October regular season winning percentages for each of the 30 MLB teams over the past three seasons.
Cleveland .667, Houston .647, Milwaukee .619, Boston .614, Chicago Cubs, .609
New York Yankees .581, Washington .565, Los Angeles Dodgers .563, New York Mets .558, Atlanta .547, Oakland .536, Seattle .524, Tampa Bay .518, Colorado .517, St. Louis .512
Kansas City .483, Los Angeles Angels .476, Minnesota .465, Pittsburgh .464, Toronto .459, Arizona .452, San Diego .440, Chicago White Sox .437, Texas .429, Philadelphia .407, Cincinnati .400
Miami .398, San Francisco .378, Baltimore .369, Detroit .353.
The Brewers pitching staff started September on a high note as four pitchers combined to shutout the Cubs on September 1. It’s interesting to note that the Brewers pitching staff had the best ERA of all 30 teams in September/October regular season games in the past three seasons. The Crew’s pitching staff ERA was 3.19. The Cleveland Indians staff was second at 3.25.
The Brewers pitching staff also allowed the fewest HRs and opponents’ batting average was the fifth lowest in the majors in September/October regular season games from 2016-18..
Can this year’s much-maligned pitching staff rise to the occasion in this season’s final month?
Follow Jerry on Twitter @StatsonTapp
