Mentor, Head Honcho, Captain: Christian Yelich Epitomizes The Brewers

American Family Field (MILWAUKEE) – On Sept. 26, during a team meeting before the Brewers’ penultimate game of their franchise-record 103-win regular season, outfielder Christian Yelich was officially named the first team captain in franchise history. 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’s clubhouse. “I could speak for an hour on it,” Brewers outfielder Sal Frelick told me, “but he was the captain before he got the ‘C.’ We all know that.” “I don’t think anyone would question that,” added infielder Joey Ortiz. “We go through him,” infielder David Hamilton told me. “Head honcho.” In many ways, Yelich’s 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’s first World Series championship. Before Frelick was a big-leaguer, he already witnessed Yelich’s impact first-hand. Drafted in the first round in 2021, Frelick couldn’t believe the way that Yelich decided to take him under his wing. “My first big-league camp, before I was in the big leagues, he’s walking me through baserunning stuff,” Frelick recalled to me. “I’m like, ‘This guy’s won an MVP, why is he telling me how tight I have to cut the third-base bag when I’m running home from second?’ It’s because he just knows how to play the game. He cares. He knows that’s how to win baseball games. And he knows if people hear it coming from him, they’ll tell other guys and show how important it is.” 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. Since Yelich’s arrival, they’ve won the division six times and made the playoffs eight times in the last nine years. “I just think the culture that was built here has been on him,” Frelick said, “on his back.” EARLY ON, MUCH of Yelich’s 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. 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’s foundation for success and ultimately lead to the franchise’s first trip to the World Series since 1982. “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.” Sometimes, it’s as simple as trying to get them into a better mindset. “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.” This October, Yelich is practicing what he preached. 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. So, Murphy stuck with him as his designated hitter for each of the Brewers’ four games in the National League Division Series against the Padres. Yelich rewarded Murphy’s confidence by recording a hit in each game. “He’s been through a lot,” outfielder Garrett Mitchell told me. “He’s had a long, successful career, first and foremost, but has also worked through the ups and downs. He’s someone who’s kind of seen it all, someone you can easily have conversations with, and he’s willing to sit down for however long and just sit and talk. When you have a leader who’s 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’s incredible.” 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’s success to start October, the captain didn’t pout. He returned to the lineup a day later and followed Jake Bauers’ 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. “This guy won an MVP — you could argue he should’ve won two — and just around the clubhouse, you would never know it,” Bauers told me. “He’s extremely humble. He doesn’t 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.” “Everybody looks up to him,” added Vaughn. “If he has something to say, you’re going to listen. I think he’s the piece of this team that kind of keeps everybody together.” 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. Over the next decade, Yelich claims he didn’t make a conscious decision to take on more of a leadership role. “It’s just doing what’s got to be done to win and to be successful,” Yelich told me. “We’ve got a lot of young players, and having been a guy that’s 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’re 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’s just stuff like that.” “It’s more like he’s an open book,” Mitchell explained. “If you have a question you want an answer to, he has it. With me, it’s 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’s willing to do whatever to help a guy learn, whether it’s,  ‘Hey, you don’t show up that late,’ or, ‘Hey, you gotta be here at this time,’ or, ‘Hey, this is how you go about your work in the cage,’ it shows up in a lot of ways. It’s different for everyone. But he’s been one of my favorite teammates I’ve ever come across.” 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. “We’ve seen it all together,” Woodruff said. “He means a ton to the city and the organization. His voice carries a lot of weight. He’s 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.” 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. “He’s way more important to this process than anyone knows,” Murphy said. Along with the Yankees’ Aaron Judge and the Royals’ 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. Now, Yelich is trying to help his squad do what no Brewers team has done before, whether through his play, his perceptiveness or both. “There’s a lot of stuff that goes on behind the scenes with Yeli that I don’t think many people get to see,” Ortiz told me. “So, I’m glad he got the ‘C’ on his chest.”