Brewers Biggest Advantage Against Padres (And the Biggest Concern)

We now know who the Milwaukee Brewers will be facing in the National League Division Series. The San Diego Padres and Chicago Cubs duked it out in the wild-card round for a chance to advance and face Milwaukee, and it was the Padres who came out on top.

San Diego blew out the Cubs in Game 1 on Tuesday, 8-0. On Wednesday, the Padres swept the series with a 4-1 win. Now, they're coming to Milwaukee with Game 1 of the National League Division Series scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 3.

This is going to be an intriguing matchup for the Brewers, to say the least. With that being said, let's take a look at Milwaukee's biggest advantage — and concern.

Biggest Advantage

Sep 27, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Jacob Misiorowski (32) throws a pitch in the first inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Pitching In General

The Brewers are built and loaded with elite pitching. Jacob Misiorowski is going to win the 2026 National League Cy Young Award. He'll be taking the mound in Game 1. Misiorowski finished the regular season with a ridiculous 1.80 ERA and struck out 252 batters in 174 2/3 innings pitched. The flamethrower made one start against the Padres during the season and tossed seven shutout innings, while striking out 10 batters on May 13. After him, Milwaukee will turn to Logan Henderson, who finished the season with a 2.47 ERA in 18 starts. It was simply an absurd season for him as well.

Things don't get easier after you get through Milwaukee's starters. The Brewers finished the season with the third-best bullpen ERA in baseball at 3.40. All in all, this club can pitch and it's the biggest reason why the Brewers led the league with 103 wins.

Biggest Concern

Sep 30, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres catcher Ethan Salas (8) and outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr. (23) high five after defeating the Chicago Cubs during game two of the Wildcard round for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

San Diego Is Red-Hot

In professional sports, you don't necessarily need to be the best team on paper to win a game, or a series. Sometimes, all it takes is being the hottest team at a point in time. Right now, there is no team in baseball that is hotter than San Diego.

There was a point early in September when it wasn't even clear if the Padres would make the postseason. Then, all of a sudden, they just started racking up wins. The Padres entered September with a 73-65 record. Then, they proceeded to go 18-6 throughout the month and absolutely crush the Cubs in the wild-card round. San Diego is playing elite baseball in general right now. Sometimes, that's all it takes. The Brewers are a better team on paper, but the Padres are the hottest team in the league.

Add us as a preferred source on Google