Nothing is certain in sports, even when all credible evidence might seem to suggest otherwise.
The Brewers were certain to have an average-at-best year, only to post their best regular season ever. Then they were certain to beat the Cubs after going up 2-0 in National League Division Series, only to wind up back at American Family Field for Friday night’s winner-take-all Game 5, the ultimate crucible of uncertainty.
Would it be last call for the Magic Brew, the curtain falling on a remarkable season, the destiny of painful early playoff exits made manifest once again? Or would it merely be one more dramatic chapter in the ongoing improbable saga of these Milwaukee Brewers?
By now, you know the answer. The Brewers vanquished the Chicago Cubs, 3-1, amidst the most raucous environment in American Family Field’s history. The team that’s certainly not a bunch of longball sluggers hit three homers – each solo, each with two outs – to seal the deal.
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For their next trick, the Brewers will point their magic toward the Los Angeles Dodgers and their litany of megabucks superstars in the National League Championship Series. And perhaps, in the process, they’ll dispel the memories of the 2018 playoffs, the last time the Brewers reached the NLCS, when the Dodgers authored Milwaukee’s demise.
That next chapter begins Monday, and with it comes a fresh dose of glorious uncertainty. But late Saturday night, on the field where they had just conquered the Cubs, a few certainties united the players, their families, and the fans all around them.
There was the pure joy of accomplishment. And the warmth of camaraderie cutting through the chilled night air. And the wherewithal to mentally capture as much of the fleeting moments as possible.
It is easy to forget that those larger-than-life Brewers on the big screens are, in quieter moments, just sons and brothers and husbands trying to accomplish extraordinary things. And that, when they finally do, those parents and brothers and spouses can’t wait to celebrate with them.
So yes, one moment, there was Andrew Vaughn homering to give the Brewers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish. And a couple of hours later, there was Andrew Vaughn on that same field, soaked with champagne and catching his wife as she jumped into his arms.
And one moment, there was Jacob Misiorowski, unshaken by the game-tying homer he’d allowed to the first batter he faced, finishing off four crucial innings toward Milwaukee’s victory. And a couple hours later, there he was back on the pitching mound, snapping photos with his family, marveling at the journey that brought a rookie to this reality.
Such snapshots were scattered all over the field, each individual story merging into one grand celebration among the blue and gold streamers on the grass and fast-fading drama in the air. They’ll become part of the tapestry of memories that made it such a watershed moment for the Brewers, for the fans who cheered them on in person, and for so many more who did so from afar.
They are moments that will certainly unlock a greater desire to craft even bigger moments. And perhaps, in the process, lead to the most magical moment of all – that Brewers World Series championship.
