Friday, September 26

SAN DIEGO -- It’s every general manager’s nightmare, the thought of someone getting hurt amid the joyful chaos of a champagne celebration.  

Matt Arnold never imagined that he would be him.  

Arnold had a nasty burn mark on the right side of his neck after a postgame hug from right fielder Sal Frelick, who was smoking a cigar while the Brewers celebrated winning their third consecutive National League Central title on Sunday in St. Louis.  

“I dapped him up and caught his neck,” said Frelick, who obviously didn’t intend to hurt the only GM he’s known since getting called up to the Majors in 2023. “He does a great job. He doesn’t step on anybody’s toes in here, he gives us our space and does all he can back there to put us all in the best position to win.”  

Arnold, the reigning MLB Executive of the Year with a chance to repeat this year based on the Brewers’ runaway success, had a good attitude about it as champagne spray filled the air.  

“No pain, no gain, man. And it was a lot of pain to get to this moment, I’ll tell you,” Arnold said. “It’s a lot of hard work from a lot of people in that room. I’m really proud of our group, just everybody taking that undaunted mentality all year. You know, we’ve had a lot of injuries, especially after the start of the season. The group cares so much about each other. It’s a really special group.”  

And it was a really special party.  

Here are some of the most memorable scenes:  

THE SKIPPER 

Kudos to the men’s baseball teams from St. Louis Community College and Wabash Valley College, who delayed their game at Busch Stadium following the Brewers-Cardinals matchup on Sunday evening so the division champs could take a team photo on the field.  

There was only one problem: The manager was missing.  

Thankfully, someone noticed that Pat Murphy was still in the clubhouse before everyone dispersed. He emerged from the dugout, joined the crew near the pitcher’s mound and took a proper photograph for posterity.  

THE COACHES 

Néstor Corredor's title on the coaching staff -- Major League field coordinator -- only scratches the surface of what he does, particularly for the team’s Spanish-speaking players. Corredor got goosebumps on Monday thinking about his favorite moment of Sunday’s clinch. Amid the madness, second baseman Brice Turang found him and doused him with a bucket of ice water.  

The chills weren’t from the cold.  

“I get chills thinking about managing [Turang] in 2018 and you’re trying to teach guys to play the game the right away,” Corredor said. “Now you see him in the big leagues, and he still remembers. We’ve got a special group. [Coaches] don’t want the credit, we just want to put the players in position to have success, and they appreciate that.  

“That changed the celebration for me yesterday. I feel the celebration is for the players. But they brought in the coaches. Not just me, every coach. That means a lot.”  

Murphy, too, got the ice bucket treatment from reliever Abner Uribe.  

“I thought I was going to have my second heart attack,” Murphy said.  

THE NEW KID 

What an unexpected Sunday for Jeferson Quero, who’s ranked by MLB Pipeline as Milwaukee’s No. 4 prospect. Originally slated to join the Brewers’ taxi squad this week to get some experience in the waning days of the regular season, Milwaukee sped up that process after its starting catcher, William Contreras, was hit by a swing on a catcher’s interference call Saturday night.  

So, Quero joined the team in St. Louis on Sunday. Hours later, he found himself in the middle of a champagne celebration -- one of three new arrivals at the right time along with pitchers Robert Gasser and Bruce Zimmermann. 

“That was a crazy day, but that was so fun,” said Quero in his first extended interview in English. “I didn’t think I would be there, but I enjoyed everything. I feel part of the team. When I was in Triple-A, I saw every result. I’m happy for the team.”  

Contreras was back behind the plate on Monday night in San Diego, so Quero remains on the taxi squad for now. Someday, his time will come.  

“It was a really good party,” Quero said. “I want to keep doing that for the next years.”  

THE SETUP

The dramatic scenes you see on television and social media after a clinch don’t just happen. It takes some behind-the-scenes planning to pull them off right, like the Brewers did on Sunday with thoughtful touches beyond the standard champagne, beer and plastic tarps.  

Among the many who helped make those images pop were Brewers director of team travel Dan Larrea, manager of team travel and clubhouse operations Joe Swanhart, manager of clubhouse operations and equipment Ben Wilkes, equipment manager Jason Shawger and director of clubhouse operations Tony Migliaccio, all of whom had a role in transforming the visitors’ clubhouse into a party pit. 

Among Larrea’s thoughtful touches were photos of late Brewers broadcaster Bob Uecker, a flag bearing Uecker’s signature and large decals of the uniform patch players have been wearing all season to decorate the tarps protecting lockers. Larrea also traveled with lighting and curated the playlist to create the right atmosphere.  

“We want to make sure the clinch was that much more special for the players and staff after a long, grinding year,” Larrea said.  

Some fans asked whether host teams send along a bill for cleaning and remodeling after clubhouse celebrations, and the answer is no. Teams cover those costs on their own, figuring it all evens out over the years.  

Even the Padres’ visiting clubhouse staff played its part. After the Brewers landed around 8:30 p.m. CT on Sunday, their alcohol-soaked uniforms and gear were delivered to Petco Park to be laundered overnight.  

THE JUNGLE

Christian Yelich always refers to playing Major League Baseball as being in the jungle, so it was a fitting theme for the Brewers’ annual rookie dress-up tradition.  

For the chartered flight to San Diego, Jacob Misiorowski was a giraffe, Caleb Durbin was an ape, Isaac Collins was an elephant, Gasser was a lemur and so on, with even first-year hitting coach Eric Theisen in on the bit dressed as a flamingo. They were all wrangled by zookeepers Turang and Frelick.

“I remember when I was a rookie and dressed up, some of the older guys dressed up with us, like William [Contreras] and Willy [Adames], so we thought it was right to do,” Turang said. “Amazon has everything.” 

Per tradition, players were dropped off short of the team hotel and were on their own the rest of the way.  

“We threw the idea together and thought it was a good one. It turned out to be pretty funny,” Turang said. “When I was a rookie, I enjoyed doing it. It kind of pulls you together as a team.” 

To subscribe to Brewers Beat, visit this page and mark "Brewers Beat" from our newsletter list. Make sure you're following the Brewers or that they're checked as your favorite team.

View Online

© 2025 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. MLB trademarks and copyrights are used with permission of Major League Baseball. Visit MLB.com. Any other marks used herein are trademarks of their respective owners.

Please review our Privacy Policy.

You (mlb-newsletters@mlb.com) received this message because you registered to receive commercial email messages or purchased a ticket from MLB. 

Please add info@marketing.mlbemail.com to your address book to ensure our messages reach your inbox. If you no longer wish to receive commercial email messages from MLB.com, please unsubscribe or log in and manage your email subscriptions.

Postal Address: MLB.com, c/o MLB Advanced Media, L.P., 1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.