First look: Game times set for Padres’ Division Series against Brewers

The Padres haven’t lost a series since losing consecutive sets to the Pirates, Rays and Reds as the schedule flipped from August to September.

They have established the best record in baseball – 43-18 – since July 24. That series included a sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers in August at Petco Park and this week’s NL Wild Card Series sweep of the Chicago Cubs at Petco Park.

Next up: a five-game National League division series against the Brewers, starting Saturday in Milwaukee.

Photos: Padres win NL Wild Card Series

“I always say, go into the playoffs on a good note,” shortstop Xander Bogaerts said amid the Padres’ champagne- and beer-soaked celebration at Petco Park. “I think he’s got potential, and I mean, (we’re) seeing what he’s doing now. We had a really good season, for sure, but especially toward the end, we started to step it up after the Braves. Jackson (Merrill) and (Fernando Tatis Jr.) pretty much carried us the whole way. You know, Manny (Machado) was hot for a long time, too, but I’m a big believer in that momentum. I am.”

Here’s a look at how the Padres and Brewers compare:

No. 4 Padres vs. No. 1 Brewers

Calendar

(Best of five, all games on Fox/FS1, 97.3 The Fan, XEMO 860 (Spanish); all times Pacific)

• Game 1: Padres TBD at Brewers RHP Jacob Misiorowski (16-5, 1.80 ERA), 5:30 p.m. Saturday
• Game 2: Padres TBD at Brewers RHP Logan Henderson (11-3, 2.47 ERA), 1 p.m. Sunday
• Game 3: Brewers TBD at Padres TBD, time TBD Tuesday
• Game 4 (if necessary): Brewers TBD at Padres TBD, time TBD Wednesday
• Game 5 (if necessary): Padres TBD at Brewers TBD, time TBD October 9

What to know

Records: Padres 90-71 (2nd in NL West), Brewers 103-59 (1st in NL Central)

Face to face: The Padres won four of six regular season games, clinching the season series with a three-game sweep at Petco Park in mid-August. The Padres outscored the Brewers 26-21 in the six-game set.

Recent playoff history: The Padres haven’t played in a division series since losing in five games to the Dodgers in 2024. They lost in three games in last year’s NL Wild Card Series at Wrigley Field before avenging that outing with a two-game sweep this week at Petco Park. The Brewers are in the playoffs for the eighth time in nine years and are looking to take the next step after losing last year’s NLCS to the Dodgers. Milwaukee’s only World Series appearance came in 1982, when they were playing in the American League. This is the first postseason matchup between the Padres and Brewers.

Go to WAR (FanGraphs.com): Padres — OF Fernando Tatis Jr. (5.5), OF Jackson Merrill (4.0), RHP Mason Miller (3.8), 1B Ty France (3.5), LHP Adrian Morejón (2.8), RHP Michael King (2.6), SS Xander Bogaerts (2.5), 3B Manny Machado (2.3); Brewers — RHP Jacob Misiorowski (6.6), 2B Brice Turang (5.9), OF Jackson Chourio (4.6), 1B Jake Bauers (3.6), OF Garrett Mitchell (3.1), C William Contreras (3.0), 3B Joey Ortiz (2.9), RHP Trevor Megill (2.5), RHP Logan Henderson (2.4).

Health check: 3B Joey Ortiz (knee, oblique, groin) and 1B Andrew Vaughn (illness) are expected back for the Division Series. RHP Brandon Woodruff (shoulder) does not rule out a return, while RHP Quinn Priest (thoracic outlet syndrome) and LHP Angel Zerpa (forearm) and Brian Fitzpatrick (UCL) are carried out for the year. Padres RHP Casey Mize (ankle) will no longer be an option heading into the NLCS. RHP Jeremy Estrada (shoulder), DE Ramon Laureano (hip surgery) and RHP Lucas Giolito (elbow) are undergoing rehabilitation in Arizona. INF Luis Rengifo underwent season-ending knee surgery this month.

Where they rank

• AVERAGE : Padres .244 (17th); Brewers .258 (1st)
• OBP: Padres .319 (12th), Brewers .341 (1st)
• SLG: Padres .398 (19th), Brewers .403 (11th)
• HR: Padres 182 (14th), Brewers 154 (T-28th)
• Stolen : Padres 164 (T-2nd), Brewers 162 (5th)
• Rotation ERA: Padres 4.45 (21st), Brewers 3.61 (5th)
• Bullpen ERA: Padres 3.50 (5th), Brewers 3.40 (3rd)
• Strikeout ratio: Padres 2.37 (17th), Brewers 2.98 (5th)
• Defensive runs recorded: Padres 32 (12th), Brewers 62 (T-4th)

Club leaders

• OPS: Padres — DE Fernando Tatis Jr. (.828), DE Jackson Merrill (.743), 3B Manny Machado (.710); Brewers — 1B Jake Bauers (.873), OF Jackson Chourio (.838), 2B Brice Turang (.816).
• HR: Padres — Machado (30), Merrill (26), Tatis (25), 1B Ty France (21); Brewers — Bauers (26 years old), Chourio (25 years old), Turang (21 years old), C William Contreras (18 years old).
• Points produced: Padres – Machado (91), Merrill (87), Tatis (83); Brewers — Turang (100), Contreras (94), Bauers (86).
• Stolen bases: Padres — Tatis (38), Merrill (27), SS Xander Bogaerts (22); Brewers — INF David Hamilton (30), Chourio (23), Turang (19), SS Cooper Pratt (19).
• Saves: Padres – RHP Mason Miller (38 for 41, 1.67 ERA); Brewers —RHP Trevor Megill (30-for-33, 2.63 ERA).
• Holds: Padres — LHP Adrian Morejón (28, 2.83 ERA), RHP Jason Adam (18, 2.62 ERA), RHP Bradgley Rodriguez (17, 2.19 ERA); Brewers — RHP Abner Uribe (23, 1.97 ERA), LHP Aaron Ashby (15, 3.12 ERA), RHP Chad Patrick (11, 3.40 ERA), RHP Antonio Senzatela (11, 5.14 ERA).

Things to watch out for

The Padres lead the majors with a .770 OPS against stuff+ pitchers since the trade deadline. The Brewers employ one of the most crushing pitchers in the majors in NL favorite Cy Young Jacob Misiorowski (252 strikeouts, 174⅔ IP). The 24-year-old has twice as many pitches 103 mph or harder (143) as the Padres closer Mason Miller (70) since his 2025 debut. Misiorowski faced the Padres for the first time in May, striking out 10 in seven shutout innings with no decisions.

RHP Abner Uribe (6-3, 1.97 ERA, 6 saves) suffered forearm discomfort and was placed on the injured list after not appearing in any of the Brewers’ three losses at San Diego in August. This included two one-point losses. Uribe has 152 strikeouts in 134⅔ innings over the last two years (1.80 ERA). But he has a 5.19 ERA in 8⅔ career innings against the Padres, including giving up three runs in two innings in May.

Christian Yelich, 34, was named the first captain in Brewers history before the start of the playoffs. Back and groin issues limited Yelich to 118 games (12 HR, .235/.315/.378), but Yelich remains the face of the Brewers’ most successful era of baseball eight years after winning the 2018 NL MVP award (36 HR, 22 steals, 110 RBI, 1,000 OPS).

Connections across the city

The Padres gave Patrick Murphythe Brewers’ back-to-back NL Manager of the Year, his first big league experience as interim skipper after Black Bud was fired in 2015. The team also recruited his son, Kaias an undrafted free agent in 2022 and pushed him to Triple-A El Paso this year. Offensive and strategic coordinator Jason Lane pitched three games for the Padres in 2014 after beginning his career as an outfielder. Padres traded LHP Robert Gasser (2022) and OF Brandon Lockridge (2025) to the Brewers, while being closer Trevor Megill was a seventh-round pick by the Padres who was cut from the system by the Cubs in the 2019 Rule 5 Draft. 1B Jake Bauers was drafted by the Padres in 2013 and traded in the Wil Myers agreement before finally landing in Milwaukee. C Gary Sanchez hit 19 home runs for the Padres in 2023. LHP Jared Koenig spent time in the Padres system after signing as a minor league free agent before joining the Brewers following the 2023 season. LHP Aaron Ashby is the nephew of former Padres pitcher Andy Ashby.