The Milwaukee Brewers are off to a fast 7-3 start through their first 10 games of the 2024 MLB season. Over the course of the past few seasons, the strength of Milwaukee’s teams has been their starting pitching and extraordinary bullpen. Things are a little different this season, however.
Corbin Burnes, the National League Cy Young Award winner in 2021, was traded to the Baltimore Orioles back in February for infielder Joey Ortiz and left-handed pitcher DL Hall. Brandon Woodruff, a two-time All-Star, is out for the season as he recovers from shoulder surgery.
With Freddy Peralta as the staff ace, the Brewers have filled their starting rotation with Colin Rea, Joe Ross, Hall, and Jakob Junis. Aaron Ashby made his first start in over a year on Monday and Wade Miley will make an abbreviated start on Wednesday. In other words, what was once the strength of the roster is now a season-long question mark.
MLB Analyst Predicts Freddy Peralta Will Be the Milwaukee Brewers’ Team MVP
Due to the Brewers’ perceived weakness in regards to their starting rotation, one MLB analyst believes that Peralta, an All-Star in 2021, will need to step up and be the standard for the rest of his fellow starters. If he does do that, Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report believes he will be the team’s MVP in 2024:
“Let’s face it: The Brewers need Peralta to be an NL Cy Young Award contender this year if they hope to make the postseason. All-Star closer Devin Williams is going to miss extended time with stress fractures in his back. Righty Brandon Woodruff is out for the season as he recovers from shoulder surgery. And 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes was traded to the Orioles in February.
“Peralta has previously been an elite No. 3 behind Burnes and Woodruff. The Brewers now need him to be a bona fide ace. The good news is that Peralta is off to a strong start, with a 3.09 ERA and 2.75 FIP to show for his first two starts of the season.”
In the article quoted above, Kelly names the 2024 MVP of every MLB team. Peralta was not the only pitcher he selected as their team’s MVP this season, but it is a surprising choice given the early performances of three particular position players.
1. Christian Yelich Appears to Be Back to MVP Form for the Milwaukee Brewers
In Christian Yelich’s first two seasons with the Brewers, he won two NL batting titles and the 2018 NL MVP Award. He famously hit .327/.415/.631 with 80 home runs and 207 RBI over that time period.
After injuring his knee in late 2019, Yelich was a shadow of his MVP self at the plate. While he still was able to put up on-base percentages over .350 in each season, both his batting average and power numbers dropped. From 2020-2022, he hit just .243/.358/.388 with 35 total home runs and 130 RBI.
Now, ten games into 2024, Yelich is hitting .324/.410/.706 with four home runs and nine RBI. If he is able to maintain these numbers, they will come very close to, or even surpass, his 2018 and 2019 totals. In addition to winning MVP in 2018, he came in second in 2019 and may have won it again had he not gotten hurt.
He certainly belongs in the conversation for early NL MVP favorites let alone team MVP.
2. William Contreras Has Been a Force for the Milwaukee Brewers Early
Last season, catcher William Contreras emerged as a fan favorite. One a relatively light-hitting team, he shined hitting .289/.367/.457 with 17 home runs and 78 RBI. His production also earned him the NL Silver Slugger for the catcher position.
Still only 26 years old, Contreras is still growing as a player, and early signs show that he may be well on his way to putting together the best season of his career. Through 10 games, he is hitting .375/.435/.625 with two home runs and nine RBI.
While it is not really fair to expect him to maintain those high of numbers over the course of a 162-game season, he is proving that he is easily one of the best catchers in baseball and should be in contention for the team’s MVP Award this year.
3. Brice Turang Has Taken a Quantum Leap for the Milwaukee Brewers
Prior to the start of the 2024 season, Brewers manager Pat Murphy said that he expected second baseman Brice Turang to take a quantum leap this year. Through 10 games, it sure seems like he has.
After hitting just .218/.285/.300 as a rookie in 2023, Turang exploded on the scene offensively in 2024. So far, he is hitting .353/.395/.954 with a home run and seven RBI.
He is also currently leading all of Major League Baseball with seven stolen bases.
If Turang can at least keep getting on base, his speed and propensity for stealing bases will put in the team MVP conversation as well.
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