The Brewers did not simply spray champagne after sweeping the Dodgers. They made room in the celebration for the players, towns and generations that helped carry Milwaukee to its first World Series appearance in 44 years.
Milwaukee clinched the National League pennant with a 6-4 victory over Los Angeles at Dodger Stadium, completing a four-game NLCS sweep. The Brewers will open the World Series on Oct. 23, with Game 1 scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.
In the middle of the clubhouse chaos, rookie shortstop Cooper Pratt could barely process the moment. The first postseason of his career has already delivered a pennant.
“How cool is that?” Pratt said. “We’re going to the World Series.”
Champagne bottles carried the franchise history
The custom bottles in the Brewers’ celebration were more than a nice clubhouse touch. For the NLDS victory over the Padres, the club used labels honoring every officially incorporated city in Wisconsin, bringing the entire state into the party.
After the Dodgers series, the bottles carried the names of every player to appear in at least one postseason game for Milwaukee, alongside the seasons in which they played. The roll call stretched from Robin Yount, Rollie Fingers and their teammates from the 1981 American League Division Series against the Yankees to the current roster, including Pratt.
It was a visual reminder that a pennant does not arrive in one October. It is built through decades of players leaving something behind for the next club to use.
The project came from the Brewers’ clubhouse staff, led by vice president of team travel and clubhouse operations Dan Larrea, whose tenure in Milwaukee’s front office dates to the 1990s. Larrea also helped establish the clubhouse “win wall,” where the club marks its season one brick and one victory at a time.
Yelich keeps the finish line in view
Christian Yelich, the Brewers’ captain, welcomed the chance to bring the World Series back to Milwaukee and play in front of a fan base that has waited a long time for this stage. But he also made clear that the club has not reached its final destination.
“The dream wasn’t only getting to the World Series,” Yelich said. “The dream is to win it.”
Yelich said the team is eager to return home, lock back in and share the occasion with supporters who have followed the Brewers across generations. He described the chance to create memories for families, parents and children, and longtime fans as something special for everyone in the clubhouse.
A place for every former Brewer
The postseason-bottle tribute reached beyond the household names. Erik Kratz, who spent only the 2018 season with Milwaukee, said seeing his name included made him reconsider the small ways a former player may have helped influence the organization.
Kratz said he did not believe he directly contributed to this club’s World Series run, but being recognized alongside the franchise’s postseason history meant plenty. To him, the gesture reflects a Brewers culture in which every player matters and each person contributes something to the next step.
That is the message sitting behind the bottles, the win wall and the celebrations: Milwaukee’s 2026 pennant belongs to the players who finished the Dodgers sweep, but the club has made sure the room is big enough for those who came before them.
