Jacob Misiorowski’s brilliant season ended sooner than he had hoped. As the 24-year-old presumptive NL Cy Young Award winner walked off the mound during Game 5 of the World Series, he was visibly frustrated. The biggest start of his life had been cut short after 5 ⅔ innings by a leg cramp. But the Brewers’ ace had already given them everything they needed. 

Milwaukee won its first World Series on Wednesday night, beating the Rays 4–1 to end a 56-year championship drought that had been active since major league baseball came to Wisconsin in 1970. The triumph came from a team that’s memorable for what it wasn’t. The Brewers didn’t spend through the nose, didn’t rely heavily on home runs and didn’t feature a roster littered with big names. But in the most important game in franchise history, its two biggest stars brought that elusive championship home.

Misiorowski was excellent on Wednesday night, baffling Tampa Bay’s hitters while allowing just two hits and one walk and striking out two. His thunderbolt fastballs drew weak contact all night, and when he departed, the Brewers led 2–0. For more than seven months, Misiorowski and Contreras worked together from 60 feet, six inches apart. One calling pitches, the other delivering them. In Game 5, Milwaukee's only two 2026 All-Stars finished the season the way they started it: with a dominant win. 

On Opening Day, Misiorowski threw five innings against the White Sox in a 14–2 victory, allowing one run on two hits and striking out 11. On the final day of the season, he struck out just two over 5 ⅔ innings but was equally effective. 

An inning after Misiorowski’s departure, Contreras looped an RBI double down the left-field line. Three batters later, he scored on a sacrifice fly before pounding the ground in celebration. That put the Brewers up 4–0. 

It should shock no one that Contreras was named World Series MVP. He was at the center of everything the Brewers did all season, then turned things up a notch in October. He led all MLB players with 19 postseason hits while slashing .373/.448/.588. He had three home runs and nine RBIs, walked seven times against just seven strikeouts and posted an astronomical 192 wRC+. Behind the plate, he threw out five of 10 base stealers, won 21 of 32 ABS challenges and guided Milwaukee’s pitching staff to a 1.98 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP. 

After the game, reliever Aaron Ashby summed up what Contreras meant to the Brewers while talking to Fox’s Kevin Burkhardt on the championship podium.

“He wants to compete every single day, he wants to die for everyone on this team. He would do anything for any one of the guys on this team. He’s our bulldog, and we love this dude,” he said.

Game 5 was Misiorowski’s finest start of the postseason, as he lasted into the sixth inning for the first time. While Contreras was unquestionably Milwaukee’s most valuable player in the playoffs, there’s little doubt Misiorowski was its best in the regular season. He led all qualified major league pitchers in ERA (1.80), strikeouts (251), WHIP (0.80) and fWAR (6.6). Misiorowski is the heavy favorite to win the NL Cy Young Award, which would make him the first pitcher since Randy Johnson to claim that honor and a World Series title in the same season.

Misiorowski credited his teammates for bouncing back after a devastating walk-off loss in Game 4. 

“Last night, it sucked. Obviously there’s no words to describe it. It wasn’t fun. To get walked off in that fashion, I mean, it happens. It’s baseball,” he said. “But for these guys to turn around and have a game like this today, and understand what it meant to the city, it’s awesome. It’s really cool to be a part of.”

Misiorowski had plenty of reasons to acknowledge his teammates. Milwaukee’s championship run was built on contributions from every corner of its roster. The team’s bullpen was nearly unhittable in October, posting a collective 1.38 ERA behind dominant performances from Aaron Ashby, Abner Uribe and Trevor Megill. Rookie shortstop Cooper Pratt and 22-year-old left fielder Jackson Chourio each had 17 hits in the playoffs. Sal Frelick was a spark plug. Garrett Mitchell belted huge home runs and made a game-saving catch while David Hamilton tore up the basepaths and delivered some unexpected power. 

Milwaukee needed every one of those contributions to reach the brink of a championship. But when it came time to finish the job, the Brewers turned to their two best players. 

Stars matter. Few shone brighter than Misiorowski and Contreras.