Murph's plea to Brewers fans: 'We need them'

This story was excerpted from Adam McCalvy's Brewers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

MILWAUKEE -- In 1982, Milwaukee threw the Brewers a parade after they lost the World Series. In 2008, fans packed the downtown Summerfest grounds on the eve of the team’s first postseason series in 26 years. In ‘18, they nearly shook Miller Park to the ground when Brandon Woodruff homered off Clayton Kershaw in the NL Championship Series.

Manager Pat Murphy would love to see the city come with that energy again in ‘24, even if the Brewers have made postseason berths seem routine. It’s why he was thrilled when he drove to American Family Field in the wee hours of Friday for the start of postseason ticket sales and found an enthusiastic crowd.

Thinking about that later in the day got Murphy going.

“The fact that you see all those people out there, I was just really impressed,” Murphy said. “The thing to do is show up and support your team, in my opinion, and pull for the 2024 Brewers, who have taken on the identity of what this team has done. Look at the adversity that they have faced. The reason I bring that out is these guys are special. But because they've had a special regular season doesn't mean they deserve something more. They have to go earn it.

“Well, help them. Be part of it. If I'm in the fan base, we're going to go be part of it. Because they lost Christian Yelich, OK? They don't have [Brandon Woodruff] coming in Game 1. They don't have [Wade Miley's] savvy in Game 2. And they've got a bunch of young guys that have never played this much, they've got a bunch of relievers that have never pitched this much. So I'm going to go there and I'm going to go crazy. I'm going to make it tough on the other team and get [the Brewers] some wins. Because it makes a difference. The fans make a difference. …

“Don't support it like, 'Well, it's finally going to be our time to go to the World Series.' No, we've got to earn every bit of it, and I think fans should understand that. It's incredible that this group, picked fourth and fifth in the league, they cut the budget, traded No. 1 [starter Corbin Burnes], and still rose up above it. It's important the fans understand it and get behind it.

“It's not just an extension of last year. It's an entirely different team. Get behind the organization and know we've got to be the underdog, the Average Joes. And we've got to come through. These guys went wire to wire as the underdogs. That doesn't happen. They haven't had it assumed. These guys need to be commended.

“I ask the fans, I plead with the fans, look at what this group has done. Don't couple it together with other [Brewers] teams. Know what this particular group has done with all the adversity and the nobodies that nobody knew, the DFA'd pitchers, being without [Devin Williams] that long, our whole pitching staff blowing up. A guy like Tobias Myers coming out of nowhere. Relish in what these guys have done out of nowhere. To me, the fans can embrace this group. That's what I would like to see. I'd like to see a packed house every night and these [fans] saying, 'Oh my God, look what these guys have done. We're going to push them across. And the fans -- I'm telling you as I'm sitting here, I've been in the game 45 years -- fans make a difference.”

Murphy kept going.

“Come and support these young people that have pulled this off, because they need you,” he said. “When I see [the attendance for] a couple of games against St. Louis -- I get it, school started. I see the couple games against Philadelphia with sparse crowds, and it hurts my soul. But I understand, families have things to do. ... But whatever we should do, we should pack those stands.

“I'm not saying we're the end all, I'm not saying we're the greatest. I'm saying we need the fans. We need them.”