Comfortable as underdogs, Yelich says Crew ready to 'prove people wrong'

When the Brewers traded ace Corbin Burnes prior to the 2024 season and lost star right-hander Brandon Woodruff to injury, a club that had relied mostly on stellar pitching and just enough hitting in previous years wasn¡¯t exactly expected to run away with a division title.

Yet when it was all said and done, the National League Central crown was Milwaukee¡¯s, and it wasn't particularly close.

Now, as the Brewers prepare to open the 2025 campaign, they see themselves as underdogs once again. And they plan for the result to be the same.

¡°We¡¯re always the underdogs every season it seems like,¡± said Christian Yelich on MLB Network Radio on Monday. ¡°We kind of enjoy proving people wrong.¡±

The same could be said for Yelich personally. The veteran outfielder was at one point considered one of the very best position players in the game. From 2018-19, he posted a 1.046 OPS with 80 home runs, winning the NL MVP Award in ¡¯18 and finishing runner-up for the honor the following year.

He struggled over the next three seasons, though, and battled injuries. Last year, a back issue limited him to 73 games before he had to undergo surgery. But he¡¯s recovered from the procedure and is expected to be ready for Opening Day. With Spring Training underway, he¡¯s ready to prove the doubters wrong.

Despite his shortened 2024 campaign, Yelich hit .315/.406/.504 with 11 homers, which bodes well for him and the Brewers moving forward.

Yelich said that whether it¡¯s for him as an individual or the club as a whole, the mantra is pretty simple.

¡°You just have to know who you are as a player and as a team,¡± he said. ¡°... We just go out there and compete. We don¡¯t really talk about it or say what it¡¯s gonna be. You just have to play the games and play the season and make sure you¡¯re competing the right way every night.¡±

Milwaukee has had a knack for surprising the baseball world. At some point, you¡¯d think we¡¯d learn not to underestimate the Brewers.

But that doesn¡¯t seem to be a problem for them.

¡°We¡¯ve done a good job in the past years of just finding a way,¡± Yelich said.

Enjoyed the info from this interview? Get 3 Months Free and listen to SiriusXM MLB Network Radio and much more. Visit www.siriusxm.com/mlbnr for offer details.