ST. LOUIS -- Would it surprise you to hear that the tie that binds Brewers right-hander Brandon Woodruff and Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw the closest has nothing to do with a home run? Kershaw, the longtime Dodgers ace who this week announced his intent to retire at the end of the 2025 season, and Woodruff, the longest-tenured Brewers player, famously squared off in Game 1 of the 2018 National League Championship Series. Woodruff connected for a home run that just about blew the roof off Miller Park. Seven years later, he still doesn’t remember running around the bases. When we ranked the top moments at Miller Park when the stadium changed to American Family Field in 2021, Woodruff’s homer off Kershaw checked in at No. 4. But when you ask Woodruff about the future Hall of Famer’s decision to call it a career, it’s not the thing he wants you to know about their connection. “It’s going through essentially what we went through at the same time, having the same surgery,” said Woodruff, who underwent a major shoulder reconstruction in October 2023 just a couple of weeks before Kershaw. “Just getting advice from him on what he was going through, what I was going through. I took more time with mine on the front end, but seeing him come back and just knowing that if he can do it at a later stage of his career, I can do it and still be effective. “He gave me a lot of inspiration. I’ve told him every time we played them -- both times this year -- I’ve told him I appreciate him being very open to me and nice to me because he doesn’t have to do that. In that sense, he’s helped me a ton in that way. I don’t know if he really knows that or not, but I’ve let him know.” |
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Kershaw was able to make it back by late July of last year but suffered a toe injury in late August and missed the Dodgers’ run to the World Series. Woodruff’s comeback took longer, but he’s been worth the wait, going 7-2 with a 3.20 ERA in his first 12 Brewers starts coming off a multi-year comeback. He said the inspiration came from both watching Kershaw from afar and exchanging messages directly. “It’s a long, tedious process, but [Kershaw encouraged Woodruff] to let things happen on their own and not try to force stuff,” Woodruff said. “Gosh, when he’s done it for so long and been through his share of injuries, you take that advice to heart.” Of course, there’s a chance the two could meet again in this year’s postseason, if the pieces fall into place just right. Woodruff noted he wouldn’t get to swing a bat, but still, “it would be an incredible series.” And Kershaw, Woodruff says, joining a chorus of peers from across baseball, has had an incredible career. “There’s very few guys in the Major Leagues that it seems like no matter what stuff they have, they can just get dudes out at a high level,’ Woodruff said. “When you play 18 years for one team and accomplish all that he’s accomplished, it’s extremely difficult. For guys like that who are Hall of Famers, it’s like, ‘How do they do it?’ You know what I mean? It’s a super tough thing to do year in and year out. Gosh, for 10-12 years he was the best in the game. To do it and be consistent and do it for that long is extremely hard. It’s kind of crazy.” |
MLB MORNING LINEUP PODCAST |
For the seventh time in the past eight years, the Brewers will play in the postseason.
That’s been settled since last weekend, but there is still plenty for the team to play for, starting with locking up the NL Central title and one of the top two seeds. But at the same time, club officials are meeting daily to plan for what might lie ahead, and we’re tracking some of those matters in our Brewers postseason FAQ, which is worth bookmarking because it will be updated regularly until Game 1.
The section likely to get the most attention is the roster, particularly the bullpen. Closer Trevor Megill (flexor) and lefty DL Hall (oblique) are on the IL with hopes of making it back for an appearance before the end of the regular season. Time is running short for that, however.
For now, here’s our prediction. Keep first base and the ‘pen in pencil for now.
C: William Contreras, Danny Jansen
1B: Andrew Vaughn, Jake Bauers, Rhys Hoskins
2B: Brice Turang
3B: Caleb Durbin
SS: Joey Ortiz, Andruw Monasterio
OF: Blake Perkins, Jackson Chourio, Isaac Collins, Sal Frelick, Christian Yelich
SP: Freddy Peralta, Quinn Priester, Brandon Woodruff
RP: Trevor Megill, Abner Uribe, Jared Koenig, Aaron Ashby, DL Hall, Nick Mears, Grant Anderson, Rob Zastryzny, Jacob Misiorowski
For more of what’s ahead, click here. |
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POSTSEASON TICKETS ON SALE |
Single-game tickets for first round postseason games at American Family Field will go on sale to the public on Tuesday, Sept. 23, at 10 a.m. CT at brewers.com/Postseason.
Specific game dates and opponents are to be determined, of course. Like every year, MLB won’t set game times until the entire field is set for each round of the postseason, which means patience is the name of the game.
Fans who would like to guarantee tickets to all games in each round of the 2025 Postseason can do so now with the purchase of a partial or full season ticket membership for 2026. It’s the only way to secure postseason tickets before they go on sale to the public next week.
The Brewers are encouraging fans to visit brewers.com/Postseason for full details. |
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