Gavin Sheets Believes Padres Have Key Advantage Over Brewers in NLDS

This series should be a classic.

Sep 30, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres first baseman Gavin Sheets (30) celebrates with outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr. (23) after hitting a two run home run in the fifth inning against 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

The San Diego Padres are heading into the National League Division Series scorching hot.

The Friars are coming off two dominant wins over the Cubs, sweeping Chicago to move on to the NLDS for the first time since 2024.

San Diego may not have home-field advantage as they face No. 1 seed Milwaukee Brewers, but they seem to believe playing in the wild-card series has done them more good than harm.

Padres slugger Gavin Sheets believes that the series win over Chicago will propel them going into the NLDS.

"I think you gain a lot of momentum from series like this," Sheets said when asked if playing in the wild-card round could give them an edge.

"Obviously the Brewers are a 1 seed for a reason. They're a great team. They've got great arms. We've played them strong all year, and we know what they offer. Obviously, you've got [Jacob] Misiorowski Game 1, who's a great pitcher. Top to bottom, they're a solid, solid team.

"We're going to start in Milwaukee, it's going to be just like [Petco Park], it's going to be rocking. But I think there's some momentum that gets built when you play these two games."

The Brewers will have had five days off after their last game before Game 1. As for the Padres, they'll only be playing on two days of rest, but may have all the momentum.

The Padres also swept the Brewers in a three-game series in August, but Sheets doesn't think that will have much of an impact on how this series plays out.

"I think there's more confidence from this [wild-card] series, build off the momentum of this series. Once you get into the postseason, everything changes a little bit. Obviously we played them strong in the regular season, but postseason is a different beast, and we know that," Sheets said.

"I think we're going to build more off the momentum that we created in this series than anything that happened in the regular season. We know what we're going up against, and we know how good they are. There's a reason they're the No. 1 seed in the NL. We'll treat them like that. We'll treat them with respect, and we'll be ready to go."

Sheets has done his fair share of damage against the Brewers. In six meetings against Milwaukee this season, Sheets hit .308 with four hits, including a three-run home run.

The offense is rolling at the right time, and the Padres will look to take down the 103-win Brewers in their quest for the first World Series title in franchise history.

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