Brewers’ Aaron Ashby Is Turning Into MLB’s Most Unexpected Story of 2026

The Milwaukee Brewers have the current leader in wins around Major League Baseball.

Apr 15, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Aaron Ashby (26) throws a pitch in the eighth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images

The Milwaukee Brewers have Major League Baseball's league leader in wins right now and it's certainly not who fans around the league would think.

If you were a fan around the league just looking at the Brewers' rotation, the easy guess for the club's leader in wins would be starter Jacob Misiorowski. Brandon Woodruff is another guy fans would likely predict would be the leader for the club in wins. Woodruff is injured, so he obviously isn't the leader for the club. Misiorowski has three wins in eight starts.

Instead, Milwaukee's leader is none other than reliever Aaron Ashby. Who saw that one coming? Certainly nobody. Ashby has a ridiculous 7-0 record as of May 11. Ashby stands alone atop baseball with his seven wins. In comparison, José Soriano of the Los Angeles Angels and Chris Sale of the Atlanta Braves are tied for the second-most wins in the league with six.

The Brewers Hurler Is Leading The League Wins

May 9, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Aaron Ashby (26) delivers a pitch against the New York Yankees in the tenth inning at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images | Michael McLoone-Imagn Images

Ashby has been hot all season to this point. The 27-year-old is 7-0 on the season across 19 total appearances and 26 innings pitched. The record for wins in a season by a reliever is former All-Star hurler Roy Face, who had 18 wins in 1959 as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Ashby has seven wins in 38 games. That's a pace of 29.8 wins across 162 games. Now, of course, Ashby isn't going to finish the season with 29 wins. Right? That's what he's on pace for, but that would simply be ridiculous and isn't realistic.

Reaching 18 wins in a season as a reliever shouldn't be realistic either. But with the way Ashby has pitched this season, he has put himself in that conversation. The bullpen is tricky and unpredictable. He has seven wins right now in just under two months. Over the next month he could go out and earn another handful of wins. On the other hand, he could go months without a win. That's the life of a reliever. So, right now, Ashby is one of the most surprising stories in baseball.

If you looked at this Brewers roster before the season, Misiorowski would be the obvious name to predict to lead the team in wins. If you had predicted that Ashby would be the club's — and league in general's — leader in wins on May 11, you should play the lottery right now.