Brewers clinch fourth straight NL Central crown on September 16

The Milwaukee Brewers clinched their fourth consecutive National League Central division title on September 16, 2026, defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-1 at PNC Park. The victory came after the Chicago Cubs lost to the Atlanta Braves 6-3, the result needed for Milwaukee to secure the crown. Jacob Misiorowski delivered five scoreless innings in the clinching game, allowing five hits and one walk while striking out seven. Luis Lara and Joey Ortiz, the latter a rookie who arrived in July, each drove in two runs from the bottom third of the batting order. Misiorowski's performance lowered his MLB-leading ERA to 1.89 and raised his MLB-leading strikeout total to 243 on the season, according to MLB.com. With 166 1/3 innings pitched, Misiorowski surpassed Teddy Higuera (240 strikeouts in 1987) for the third-most strikeouts on the Brewers' single-season leaderboard. The Brewers improved to 94-57 with the win and are within striking distance of the franchise record for wins, 97, set last season. The club has won the NL Central five of the last six years and six of the last nine years, per MLB.com's reporting. The Cubs' 103-win season in 2016 remains the first 100-win season for an NL Central club since that year. Brewers manager Pat Murphy noted that the team swept the Cubs at Wrigley Field in May to surge into first place, a moment Misiorowski anchored with a win that kept Milwaukee atop the division for good. In August, Misiorowski pitched the Brewers to the best record in Major League Baseball with a win over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Murphy also acknowledged early uncertainty about the 2026 roster's potential, saying he had no clear moment where he could say the team was special, though he noted the notion is "starting to grow on me." The team was swept in San Diego in August "during a series in which every move backfired," indicating periods of vulnerability during the season despite the division title. The Brewers clinched their playoff spot last week with a quiet celebration before locking down the division on September 16. They have not appeared in the World Series since 1982 and remain one of five current MLB franchises still seeking a championship, alongside the Seattle Mariners, San Diego Padres, Tampa Bay Rays, and Colorado Rockies.