After Milwaukee Brewers star outfielder Christian Yelich shattered his knee cap in 2019, fans all had the same question: when will he return to his 2018-19 MVP form? After hitting .327/.415/.631 while averaging 40 home runs, 104 RBI, and 26 stolen bases per season in 2018 and 2019, Yelich saw his batting line plummet to .205/.356/.403 in 2020.
At the time, fans had hoped that it was the weirdness of the COVID-shortened season that affected Yelich at the plate. They hoped that a return to normalcy in 2021 would bring the MVP form back.
But it didn’t. While his batting average steadily improved over the next two seasons, his .251/.358/.379 hitting line during those seasons fell far below what fans had come to expect.
In 2023, however, he hit a much improved .278/.370/.447 with 19 home runs, 78 RBI, and 26 stolen bases. Every single one of these stats were his best since 2019, and fans began to wonder if maybe, just maybe, he had turned a corner.
Christian Yelich Returned to Form for the Milwaukee Brewers in 2024
And in 2024, Yelich showed that he had. While his power numbers from the 2018-19 seasons had not returned, his ability to rack up hits sure did. He was hitting so well that, for the first time in his career, he was voted as a starter for the National League All-Star team.
As Brewers fans are well aware, his season ended too early due to a lingering back injury that required surgery. Yelich ended 2024 with a .315/.406/.504 batting line with 11 home runs, 42 RBI, and 21 stolen bases in 73 games.
The MVP-form had returned. Unfortunately, his back would not cooperate. Obviously, one’s back is crucial in just about every aspect of life, let alone playing professional baseball.
With shortstop Willy Adames now playing for the San Francisco Giants, the Brewers need players they currently have to pick up the slack offensively, and having a healthy Yelich would go a long way to accomplishing that.
Christian Yelich Appears on Pace to Be Ready for Milwaukee Brewers Opening Day
Per a social media post by Brewers insider Adam McCalvy, Yelich has shown up to spring training far earlier than he was expected to, and sees no reason why he would not be ready for Opening Day:
Christian Yelich is in camp and says his rehab is on schedule. There’s no reason, he said, to think he won’t be ready for Opening Day.
— Adam McCalvy (@AdamMcCalvy) February 15, 2025
As one might expect, this was welcomed news to Brewers fans:
LET’S GO! #ThisIsMyCrew https://t.co/Qua3S3zZwS
— Brendan Meyers (@BrendanJMeyers) February 15, 2025
Don’t let the Four Nations distract you from possibly the best baseball news we’ve gotten in months https://t.co/vjZmYnSjbq
— Elizabeth Hoffman (@elizabeth12687) February 15, 2025
Our king is ready for a comeback season 👑 https://t.co/kcOzsiwDMM
— Trace Browning (@TraceBrowning) February 15, 2025
GREAT NEWS💙💛 https://t.co/1wEAmjFLzB
— allie adames (@AllieKurowski) February 15, 2025
While some fans also expressed concerns about how many games Yelich will be able to play, it is worth noting that he played 154 and 144 games in 2022 and 2023 respectively while dealing with this lingering injury.
Former Brewers star Ryan Braun, as fans may recall, also dealt with back injury issues in the latter seasons of his career. From 2014-2019, he was able to play between 125-144 games in every year except one.
While one cannot expect Yelich, or most any Major League player these days, to appear in all 162 games, it seems that 130-140 is in the realm of possibility.
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