{"id":891582,"date":"2026-10-23T04:52:14","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T04:52:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/891582\/"},"modified":"2026-10-23T04:52:14","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T04:52:14","slug":"mentor-head-honcho-captain-christian-yelich-epitomizes-the-brewers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/891582\/","title":{"rendered":"Mentor, Head Honcho, Captain: Christian Yelich Epitomizes The Brewers"},"content":{"rendered":"

American Family Field (MILWAUKEE) \u2013 On Sept. 26, during a team meeting before the Brewers\u2019 penultimate game of their franchise-record 103-win regular season, outfielder Christian Yelich was officially named the first team captain in franchise history.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The honor, while meaningful, was something of a formality. The “C” on his uniform denotes what has already been clear for years to every player who has stepped through Milwaukee\u2019s clubhouse.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I could speak for an hour on it,” Brewers outfielder Sal Frelick told me, “but he was the captain before he got the \u2018C.\u2019 We all know that.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I don\u2019t think anyone would question that,” added infielder Joey Ortiz.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“We go through him,” infielder David Hamilton told me. “Head honcho.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Christian Yelich after the Brewers won the NLCS. (Photo by Keith Birmingham\/MediaNews Group\/Pasadena Star-News via Getty Images) <\/p>\n

In many ways, Yelich\u2019s teammates credit him for building the culture that has this Milwaukee squad in position to do what no team in Brewers history has done before, now four wins away from winning the franchise\u2019s first World Series championship.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Before Frelick was a big-leaguer, he already witnessed Yelich\u2019s impact first-hand. Drafted in the first round in 2021, Frelick couldn\u2019t believe the way that Yelich decided to take him under his wing.<\/p>\n

“My first big-league camp, before I was in the big leagues, he\u2019s walking me through baserunning stuff,” Frelick recalled to me. “I\u2019m like, \u2018This guy\u2019s won an MVP, why is he telling me how tight I have to cut the third-base bag when I\u2019m running home from second?\u2019 It\u2019s because he just knows how to play the game. He cares. He knows that\u2019s how to win baseball games. And he knows if people hear it coming from him, they\u2019ll tell other guys and show how important it is.”<\/p>\n

Before Yelich arrived in 2018 and was named MVP in his first season with the team, the Brewers had missed the playoffs six straight seasons.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Since Yelich\u2019s arrival, they\u2019ve won the division six times and made the playoffs eight times in the last nine years.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I just think the culture that was built here has been on him,” Frelick said, “on his back.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

EARLY ON, MUCH of Yelich\u2019s impact came with his play. He hit 36 homers in 2018, another 44 in 2019, then staked his future to the franchise in 2020, when he signed a club-record nine-year, $215 million extension with Milwaukee that cemented his place as a Brewer for life.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He has spent every season since then, whether healthy or not, trying to instill the values and attention to detail that would build the club\u2019s foundation for success and ultimately lead to the franchise\u2019s first trip to the World Series since 1982.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“I think the last three years, we have the best record in baseball,” said Brewers manager Pat Murphy. “Christian Yelich is at the forefront of all of that, whether he’s injured or not injured or whatever. He’s leading these young people that nobody expected. Nobody picked us to win the division one time in those three years, and he’s in the middle of it all, helping these young players believe in themselves.”<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Brewers manager Pat Murphy standing next to team captain Christian Yelich. (Photo by Mary DeCicco\/MLB Photos via Getty Images) <\/p>\n

Sometimes, it\u2019s as simple as trying to get them into a better mindset.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“This last year, when I was in a slump, he helped me out a lot with just the mental side of things, understanding that every day is a new day,” Ortiz told me. “Just try not to dwell on the past and keep moving forward.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

This October, Yelich is practicing what he preached.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This season, he hit below league average for the first time in his career. He is no longer the offensive force he once was, before age and back issues turned him from a superstar into more of a complementary player, but his manager knows how important he is to the team.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

So, Murphy stuck with him as his designated hitter for each of the Brewers\u2019 four games in the National League Division Series against the Padres. Yelich rewarded Murphy\u2019s confidence by recording a hit in each game.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“He\u2019s been through a lot,” outfielder Garrett Mitchell told me. “He\u2019s had a long, successful career, first and foremost, but has also worked through the ups and downs. He\u2019s someone who\u2019s kind of seen it all, someone you can easily have conversations with, and he\u2019s willing to sit down for however long and just sit and talk. When you have a leader who\u2019s willing to do whatever it takes not only to win but to help teach you, show you the ropes, teach you right from wrong, it\u2019s incredible.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

And when the Brewers decided to play lefty masher Andrew Vaughn over Yelich in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series against ace Tarik Skubal, despite Yelich\u2019s success to start October, the captain didn\u2019t pout.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He returned to the lineup a day later and followed Jake Bauers\u2019 iconic 12-pitch walk against Yoshinobu Yamamoto with a go-ahead, two-run hit that knocked the reigning World Series MVP out of the game in the third inning.<\/p>\n

“This guy won an MVP \u2014\u00a0you could argue he should\u2019ve won two \u2014\u00a0and just around the clubhouse, you would never know it,” Bauers told me. “He\u2019s extremely humble. He doesn\u2019t care about Christian Yelich; he cares about the Milwaukee Brewers, and I think that really kind of sets the tone for the rest of the roster.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Everybody looks up to him,” added Vaughn. “If he has something to say, you\u2019re going to listen. I think he\u2019s the piece of this team that kind of keeps everybody together.”<\/p>\n

YELICH ARRIVED IN Milwaukee three years before Ryan Braun departed. The two franchise icons were both part of the 2018 team that fell one game short of going to the World Series.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Over the next decade, Yelich claims he didn\u2019t make a conscious decision to take on more of a leadership role.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“It\u2019s just doing what\u2019s got to be done to win and to be successful,” Yelich told me. “We\u2019ve got a lot of young players, and having been a guy that\u2019s kind of been around for a while and seen a lot of different things in the game and experienced a lot of the things that they\u2019re probably going through for the first time, you kind of remember what it felt like to be at that point in your career. If you can lend a helping hand or guide somebody through those times or wish you knew something back then when you were going through it, it\u2019s just stuff like that.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Brewers great Ryan Braun alongside Christian Yelich in 2018. (Photo by Dylan Buell\/Getty Images) <\/p>\n

“It\u2019s more like he\u2019s an open book,” Mitchell explained. “If you have a question you want an answer to, he has it. With me, it\u2019s just learning how to be a professional. How do you show up every day and do the things that you do? I think that shows up in a lot of different ways, but the fact he\u2019s willing to do whatever to help a guy learn, whether it\u2019s,\u00a0 \u2018Hey, you don\u2019t show up that late,\u2019 or, \u2018Hey, you gotta be here at this time,\u2019 or, \u2018Hey, this is how you go about your work in the cage,\u2019 it shows up in a lot of ways. It\u2019s different for everyone. But he\u2019s been one of my favorite teammates I\u2019ve ever come across.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yelich and Brandon Woodruff are the only players who remain from that 2018 Brewers squad, which came so close to ending the World Series drought. Eight years later, the NL champions are reaping the rewards of the wisdom of their most-tenured players.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“We\u2019ve seen it all together,” Woodruff said. “He means a ton to the city and the organization. His voice carries a lot of weight. He\u2019s our franchise player. He just means a ton to the guys. He goes about his days and playing the game the right way, which is why guys respect him so much.”<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Four Brewers MVPs \u2013 Christian Yelich, Rollie Fingers, Robin Yount, and Ryan Braun. (Photo by Larry Radloff\/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) <\/p>\n

At 34, Yelich is now the oldest player on a youthful Brewers squad known for its ability to pressure opponents with contact and speed. He no longer runs the way he did in 2019, when he stole 30 bases, led the majors with a 1.100 OPS and had an argument to win MVP for a second straight season, but his impact remains.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“He\u2019s way more important to this process than anyone knows,” Murphy said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Along with the Yankees\u2019 Aaron Judge and the Royals\u2019 Salvador Perez, Yelich is now one of only three active players with the title of captain. Before accepting the honor, he asked for the permission of Hall of Famer Robin Yount, who was a vital part of the last Brewers team to make it to a World Series.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now, Yelich is trying to help his squad do what no Brewers team has done before, whether through his play, his perceptiveness or both.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“There\u2019s a lot of stuff that goes on behind the scenes with Yeli that I don\u2019t think many people get to see,” Ortiz told me. “So, I\u2019m glad he got the \u2018C\u2019 on his chest.”<\/p>\n

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