How the Brewers Can Sweep the Cubs on Wednesday

How the Brewers Can Sweep the Cubs in the NLDS

Offensive Firepower at the Right Time

The Brewers have flipped the script on their season-long power narrative, unloading a barrage of home runs at crucial moments in both games against Chicago. Andrew Vaughn, William Contreras, and Jackson Chourio have not only provided early leads but also demoralized the Cubs by responding to adversity immediately. Vaughn’s three-run homer matched Seiya Suzuki‘s opening blast for Chicago, while Contreras and Chourio added the finishing touches to keep momentum in Milwaukee’s favor. This kind of timely hitting has been rare during the regular season, but the Brewers’ ability to capitalize on scoring chances against the Cubs’ vaunted staff has made all the difference.

Pitching Ingenuity and Bullpen Depth

Despite injuries to key starters like Brandon Woodruff, the Brewers have excelled by leveraging their bullpen depth and playing the matchups perfectly. Jacob Misiorowski delivered pivotal outs in middle relief, stabilizing the team when the Cubs’ offense threatened. With Freddy Peralta, Aaron Ashby, and flame-throwers like Abner Uribe at their disposal, Milwaukee can mix and match to neutralize Chicago’s lefty-heavy lineup and counter the Cubs’ attempts to jumpstart rallies. Game Three could see manager Pat Murphy deploy an opener or another rookie arm, keeping the Cubs off-balance and forcing them to adjust to unfamiliar looks. This is a strategy that’s worked exceptionally well so far.

Exploiting Cubs’ Offensive Weaknesses

The Cubs have consistently underperformed in high-leverage situations and when trailing. This damning truth has reared its head repeatedly in this series. With a slash line of .241/.321/.409 when behind, Chicago’s key hitters like Pete Crow-Armstrong, Seiya Suzuki, and Michael Busch have failed to deliver when their team is down. Milwaukee’s pitchers have attacked aggressively, often shutting the door before the Cubs can mount significant comebacks. The Brewers’ approach has combined patience at the plate with speed on the bases. They have forced defensive errors, worked counts, and refused to give the Cubs any breathing room. By maintaining pressure with stolen base threats like Sal Frelick and Brice Turang, Milwaukee can further exploit Chicago’s middle-of-the-pack bullpen. This turns singles and walks into game-changing runs.

Key Factors for the Sweep

• Jump out to an early lead
  • Set the tone with patient at-bats and timely power hitting.
• Aggressive bullpen management
  • Neutralize Chicago’s best bats with fresh arms and different looks.
• Take advantage of the Cubs’ inability to rally
  • Stay focused defensively and avoid high-leverage lapses.
• Use team speed against Chicago’s defense
  • Swipe bases and force mistakes on pressure plays.

If the Brewers stick to the aggressive, creative formula that’s gotten them this far, the scene at Wrigley could be a triumphant road celebration of an NLDS sweep. A sweep that will resonate throughout the NL playoffs.