As the postseason nears, the same question keeps coming back around: could this be the year a first-time World Series winner finally breaks through?
The Dodgers are trying to do something even bigger - a historic three-peat after back-to-back titles - but among the five clubs that still haven’t won it all, three are in this year’s playoff field: the Brewers, Padres and Rays. Each has been close before.
Each has lived through the disappointment. And each has enough going for it now to make a real run at ending the drought.
Milwaukee has waited the longest. The Brewers’ lone World Series trip came in 1982, when Robin Yount, Paul Molitor & Co. took the franchise within one win of the title before falling to the Cardinals in seven games.
They were close again in 2018, only to lose a seven-game NLCS to the Dodgers. This year’s club set a franchise record for wins, leaning on strong starting pitching and timely hitting - the kind of traits Milwaukee has built around for years while operating with a below-average payroll and without a roster full of headline names.
Entering Thursday, Brewers starters had a fifth-ranked 3.64 ERA, and the team led MLB with an .801 OPS with runners in scoring position.
That foundation looks even more dangerous now because Milwaukee has something October teams covet: a true ace. Jacob Misiorowski has been the most dominant pitcher in the league, and the NL Cy Young Award frontrunner enters the postseason leading MLB with a 1.86 ERA, a .159 opponents’ batting average and 247 strikeouts.
Logan Henderson has also given the rotation a real boost, posting a 2.47 ERA in his age-24 season. There are still questions deeper in the staff, especially after Kyle Harrison’s season went south, but having two starters this locked in can carry a lot of weight once the games tighten.
San Diego’s path looks different, but the appeal is just as clear. The Padres have been to the World Series twice before - losing to the Tigers in 1984 and being swept by the late-1990s Yankees in 1998 - and the closest they’ve come since was 2022, when they reached the NLCS and lost in five games to the Phillies.
What’s changed this year is the consistency. The Padres have now made the playoffs in 2020, ’22 and ’24, and this marks a franchise-best third straight October appearance.
After a stretch of uneven seasons in between their good years, they’ve finally put together another postseason run.
Their formula is built on two things: a bullpen that can slam the door and a lineup that’s heating up at exactly the right time. Mason Miller gives them a closer with triple-digit heat and a nasty slider, the kind of arm that can turn a late lead into a formality.
Adrian Morejon has been a workhorse in front of him, with a 2.80 ERA over 83 2/3 innings entering Thursday, and the rest of the relief group has been largely excellent. If San Diego grabs an early lead, it can make the game feel over quickly.
The bats have been just as important. The Padres led the Majors with a .823 team OPS in September, and Fernando Tatis Jr. has been at the center of the surge.
After going homerless through his first 55 games in 2026, he has already hit eight this month. If that power keeps showing up in October, San Diego has a real chance to keep this run going.
Tampa Bay’s case is a little quieter, but it’s still strong. The Rays have reached the World Series twice, losing to the Phillies in five games in 2008 and falling to the Dodgers in six games in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.
This year, they have an AL MVP candidate in Junior Caminero to anchor the offense, but the biggest reason they’re here is the rotation. Drew Rasmussen, Nick Martinez, Shane McClanahan and Freddy Peralta have helped make Tampa Bay one of the best starting staffs in baseball, with a collective 3.53 ERA entering Thursday - behind only the Yankees and Dodgers.
Three teams. Three different paths. And for all the history that still hangs over them, each one has enough firepower to make the first-time champion question feel very real this October.
In Other News...
Pat Murphy Sent A Clear Brewers Message During A Historic Win
The Brewers reached a milestone no one in franchise history had seen before, claiming their 100th win while locking up the No. 1 seed in the National League playoffs. In a season built on consistency and accountability, the moment was as much about the teams identity as the record itself, with Milwaukee continuing to show that the standard does not change just because the wins keep piling up.
Pat Murphy reinforced that point during the game by benching William Contreras in the eighth inning after he did not run out a ground ball, a move that fit the way the Brewers have operated all season. Contreras has been swinging the bat well lately, but Milwaukee has made it clear that every player is held to the same expectations, and on a night meant for celebration, Murphy still found a way to send a message about how the team plans to keep handling business. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Farm System Depth Is Suddenly Hard To Ignore
The Brewers are using their end-of-season minor league awards to shine a light on just how much talent has bubbled up through the system at once. The organization recently unveiled finalists for its Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Year honors, a new wrinkle for the club, and the list tells a clear story about the strength of the farm. Ten prospects made the cut, with seven position players and four pitchers represented across multiple levels.
Among the names drawing attention are Andrew Fischer and Blake Burke, part of a group that reflects the kind of depth Milwaukee has spent years trying to build. It is the sort of list that suggests the system is not leaning on just one or two headline prospects, but has real volume and balance throughout the pipeline, which is exactly the kind of development buzz a big-league club wants heading into the offseason. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Are Trusting A Rookie Arm In A Spot That Matters
Shane Drohan has quietly worked his way into a meaningful place on the Brewers postseason plans, with Pat Murphy confirming the rookie will be on the clubs National League Division Series roster starting Oct. 3. Acquired from the Red Sox in the offseason, Drohan has spent his first year in Milwaukee moving between the rotation and the bullpen, a kind of flexibility that tends to matter more in October than it does in the grind of the regular season.
The Brewers have seen enough of that versatility to trust him in a spot where every inning can swing the tone of a series. Drohan has made 32 appearances and posted a 4.24 ERA, numbers that show both the learning curve and the value of having a young arm who can cover different roles when the matchup board starts getting thin. For a team building around flexibility, his inclusion is another sign that Milwaukee is willing to lean on a rookie if the situation calls for it. [Read more 🡒]