This Underrated Stat Has Been Brewers' Biggest Weapon in 2026

The Milwaukee Brewers recently suffered through a six-game losing streak, but have now come out of their funk and are just a half-game out of first place in the National League Central. The three-time defending division champions have remained successful despite trading players such as Corbin Burnes, Devin Williams and Freddy Peralta over the past three seasons.

Often times, teams win with power and home runs. That is how a lot of teams score runs and set themselves apart from the rest of the pack. However, due to some injuries, the Brewers have had to get creative on the basepaths, and Adam McCalvy of MLB.com notes that their ability to run the bases is what is leading to them having more success.

Stolen bases has become Brewers' biggest weapon

"The Brewers came into Saturday as MLB’s leader with 30 stolen bases, and that’s no fluke," McCalvy wrote. "Besides being blessed with speed, they hired a new first-base coach over the winter in Spencer Allen to maximize efficiency on the basepaths, which includes both stealing bases and taking the extra base wherever possible. At the moment, that kind of super-aggressive outlook is a necessity, since the Brewers are playing without three of their top hitters: Christian Yelich, Jackson Chourio andAndrew Vaughn are all on the injured list.

It may seem obvious, but stolen bases and the ability to run are extremely underrated parts of the game. Even with some of their best hitters available, the Brewers didn't rely solely on the home run ball last season. Instead, they got creative with their baserunning and found other ways to win.

Such is the case again this season, and with some of their best hitters on the shelf, they have been forced to get creative. But rather than compensating for losses, they have simply unlocked another way to score runs and win games.

Sometimes, teams don't need a whole lot of power in their lineup if there is a good number of players that can run and create havoc on the bases. It's similar to how the St. Louis Cardinals were successful in the 1980s.

They didn't have a ton of power, but they had a lot of speed, and that allowed them to score runs in different ways. This could ultimately end up being the best formula for the Brewers. It's not the first thing people think of when concerning good offenses that score runs, but it's a very important aspect of the game that cannot be overlooked.

If the Brewers continue to perfect this, they should be in the mix for another NL Central title.

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