Milwaukee Brewers at Philadelphia Phillies

PHILADELPHIA – The Brewers’ long final road trip began last week in Pittsburgh on the night they clinched the NL Central. It continued with a sweep in Baltimore, where they broke the franchise record for victories in a season. Then it was on to Philadelphia, where they secured a first-round bye and, with a 5-1 win in Thursday’s road finale, reached new heights for the franchise. One hundred wins.  That had a nice ring to it, though the Brewers (100-59) still have work to do and regular season games to play. Three of them, to be precise, back home against the Cardinals beginning on Friday night, where the American Family Field faithful will welcome home the winningest team in the city’s Major League history. Before Thursday, the Brewers were one of seven teams, with the Blue Jays, Marlins, Nationals, Padres, Rangers and Rockies, yet to post a 100-win season. When they left that group behind with a go-ahead rally in the eighth inning on Thursday night, the Brewers became the first team in Major League history to win at least 100 games in a season without a winning streak longer than five games. They had three separate five-game winning streaks this season, but never won a sixth. The Brewers are the first team to win 100 games since the Braves, Orioles and Dodgers in 2023, and the first NL Central team since the 2016 Cubs, who went 103-58-1 on the way to winning the World Series.  But there are no guarantees. Of the previous 10 teams this decade to win 100 games, eight lost their first-round playoff series. 2023 Braves (104) - Lost NLDS 2023 Orioles (101) - Lost ALDS 2023 Dodgers (100) - Lost NLDS 2022 Astros (106) - Won ALDS, won ALCS, World Series 2022 Braves (101) - Lost NLDS 2022 Dodgers (111) - Lost NLDS 2022 Mets (101) - Lost NL Wild Card Series 2021 Giants (107) - Lost NLDS 2021 Dodgers (106) - Won NL Wild Card Game, won NLDS, lost NLCS 2021 Rays (100) - Lost ALDS Manager Pat Murphy & Co. will try to buck that history, and they are already deep into planning to make the most of the five days between the end of the regular season and Game 1 of the NLDS on Saturday, Oct. 3. For the Brewers, who rank last in the NL in home runs but second in runs scored because of their knack for making the most of contact and speed, it’s particularly important to remain in game mode. Win No. 100 was emblematic of that tendency. With the teams tied at 1-1 through seven innings, the Brewers’ winning rally began with Jackson Chourio pinch-hitting for designated hitter Willi