Milwaukee, WI
MLB playoffs 2024: Milwaukee Brewers assert themselves as one of MLB's best teams by clinching first postseason spot
The Milwaukee Brewers are the most impressive playoff team this season.
No, that’s not hyperbole. It’s just the truth. Granted, the Brewers have never been the “sexy” team or the team that boasts the most elite talent. But despite that, they found a way to run away with their division, leaving the rest of their NL Central rivals in their wake.
On Wednesday, Milwaukee became the first team to clinch a postseason berth this season. With the Cubs’ loss to the Oakland A’s, the Brewers captured their second consecutive NL Central crown and sixth postseason appearance in the past seven seasons.
Despite their propensity for reaching October, there weren’t many who believed the Brewers would be postseason-bound going into this season. During the offseason, their longtime manager, Craig Counsell, decided to head south to become the manager of the Chicago Cubs, leaving the keys to former bench coach Pat Murphy.
When the Brewers also dealt their ace and former NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes to the Orioles, it looked like Milwaukee was headed for a rebuild. Even throughout the season, the challenges continued to arise, including the loss of the team’s best player, Christian Yelich, to a season-ending back injury.
None of that stopped Milwaukee from being one of baseball’s best teams, and with each passing month, they seem to have gotten better and better. And that’s not only through the eye test; the numbers back up their dominance as well.
What makes the Brewers such a good team? There simply aren’t many things they don’t do well. Offensively, they rank fourth in runs scored and second in OPS with runners in scoring position. Defensively, they’re fourth in MLB in both defensive runs saved and outs above average. And their pitching has held up its end of the bargain as well, ranking fourth in team ERA.
Milwaukee has gotten consistent production from throughout its lineup all season, with All-Star performances from William Contreras, Willy Adames and Yelich before his injury. But the player who has helped take this team to another level is rookie phenom Jackson Chourio. Chourio has become every bit the star the Brewers thought he would be when they signed him to an eight-year, $82 million extension before his debut. The 20-year-old has a .901 OPS since June 1.
Across the season as a whole, the Brewers not only built the largest divisional lead in baseball (10.5 games as of Wednesday), but they have also held their division lead the longest. Milwaukee has had a share of or sole possession of first place in the Central since April 12, when they began pulling away from the rest of the division en route to the title.
It’s hard to look at the Brewers and not see Murphy’s imprint throughout the roster. After several years as Counsell’s bench coach, Murphy has transitioned seamlessly to the role of manager. You have to imagine that his presence in the Brewers’ dugout for so many years before he got the job built the kind of trust that it would take other first-year managers much longer to develop.
Also, the “us against the world” mentality doesn’t often go very far, but it feels like a pretty apt attitude for this team.
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This season, the Brewers are a combined 11-14 against the Dodgers, Phillies, Padres, Mets and Diamondbacks, with a minus-4 run differential in those games that shows just how close they were. In the postseason, the numbers — and the outcomes — could easily flip in Milwaukee’s direction.
It’s impossible to predict what’s in store for the Brewers in the ever-volatile NL wild-card round, but their ability to play their best game on a consistent basis makes this a team worth keeping an eye on as the calendar turns to October.
Milwaukee, WI
Same name keeps coming up in mock drafts as possible Bucks selection
Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam talks greater involvement, Giannis future
Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam says that he will have a greater involvement with the team and that includes the decision on if to re-sign Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Milwaukee Bucks know their placement in the 2026 NBA Draft, slotted No. 10 for their first lottery pick in a decade. Who are some of the possible selections at that spot when June 23 rolls around?
Check out what the first post-lottery wave of mock drafts has to say, most of them pointing to same prospect, that being Nate Ament of Tennessee, a 6-10 freshman small forward.
Nate Ament, forward, Tennessee
From Spencer Woo of ESPN: “While Ament’s stock has slipped from an early top-five projection, he had productive stretches this season within a tricky team context and has room to help himself in workouts. Although scouts are split on whether he has star potential or projects better as a long-term supporting player, there is still plenty of intrigue around Ament in the lottery. As a tall skill player with shotmaking upside, Ament fits a player archetype that teams often love to swing on. As Milwaukee considers a post-Antetokounmpo future, a malleable upside swing such as Ament could be a fit.”
Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo! Sports: “The Bucks should take a swing to jump-start their new era, whether or not Giannis Antetokounmpo is part of it. Players who can handle, shoot off the dribble, and stand at 6-foot-10 don’t grow on trees. This physical foundation kept Ament in lottery consideration even after a dreadful start to his freshman season when he struggled to score efficiently and make an impact defensively. But over the second half of the year for Tennessee, he flipped a switch and shots began to fall. He averaged 23.8 points over a six-game stretch in January and February that reminded everyone why he was a top recruit in the country. Then he dealt with an ankle injury that ruined his momentum entering March and he severely struggled during the tournament. Bucks general manager Jon Horst has never been afraid to take risks though. If Ament pans out, it could look like a stroke of genius.”
Gary Parrish of CBS Sports: “Ament had an up-and-down freshman season for the Vols – but the upside isn’t hard to spot. Less than a year ago, the 2025 McDonald’s All-American was considered a possible top-five pick. So getting Ament here would be nice for a Bucks franchise that seems on the verge of rebuilding after presumably trading Giannis Antetokounmpo this offseason.”
The Ringer: “Barring some transactional magic, this could be Milwaukee’s best bite at the talent apple in the draft for a while. The Bucks don’t currently have control over a first-round pick until 2031. If Giannis Antetokounmpo decides it’s time to move on, this roster will be rudderless and talent-deprived. If Giannis decides not to move on, it’ll have a rudder but still won’t go anywhere. Less than ideal, but that makes this a ‘best player available’ scenario, or rather ‘best wager available.’ There are definitely more stable options in this range, but Ament’s higher possible outcomes justify this pick. Ament fell short of expectations this past season, and he slid from top-five consideration as a result, but the jumbo-sized, smooth-moving ball handler is still a worthy bet here. Handling the ball at 6-foot-10 is an intriguing enough skill to instill some belief that he could develop into a quality asset. And the Bucks can take the risk given their circumstances.
Adam Finkelstein of CBS Sports: “Ament is a polarizing prospect with a wide range of outcomes on draft night. A late-blooming 6-foot-10 combo-forward who is fluid, has touch, and skill, he’s also inconsistent and needs to get stronger. While his freshman year was up and down, Ament’s overall arc has been linear, and there’s still glaring potential. That upside makes him a logical choice for a Milwaukee team that has a very uncertain future ahead of them.”
Brian Lewis of New York Post: “After the run on guards, taking an upside swing on a gifted developmental player here seems like a worthy gamble for a Bucks team that could be in full-on rebuild in a post-Giannis era.”
Two other names mentioned
From Eric Nehm of The Athletic: “This was an incredibly difficult pick to make without knowing what the Bucks are going to do with Giannis Antetokounmpo. If the 10-time All-Star forward remains in Milwaukee, it might make more sense to look at someone like Yaxel Lendeborg, who could make an impact right away and give the Bucks more size and skill. Instead, though, I went with Philon, who has a lot of offensive upside and could be protected on the defensive end by Ryan Rollins. Philon is an electrifying offensive player who shot 50 percent from the field and 39 percent from 3 while averaging 22 points, 3.5 rebounds and five assists per game last season.”
From Kurt Helin of NBC Sports: “The Bucks need all the backcourt help they can get, and Burries may not be flashy, but he does a lot of things well — he can play on and off the ball, can knock down catch-and-shoot jumpers but also attack closeouts, and he gets downhill off screens and has a midrange pull-up game.”
Milwaukee, WI
Brad Paisley to perform at BMO Pavilion in Milwaukee on Sept. 4
Brad Paisley (Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE – Brad Paisley is scheduled to perform at the BMO Pavilion in Milwaukee on Sept. 4.
Ticket information
What we know:
The ticket pre-sale for Brad’s fan club members, Paisley Nation, begins on Tuesday, May 12 at 10 am. All tickets available at BradPaisley.com.
The tour will also offer a variety of VIP packages and experiences for fans to take their concert experience to the next level.
FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android
Packages vary but include premium seats, a guided backstage tour, VIP-exclusive gift item, early entry & more. VIP package contents vary depending on the selected offer. For more information, visit VIPnation.com.
The Source: The information in this post was provided by Live Nation.
Milwaukee, WI
WSJ: Billionaire Milwaukee Bucks co-owner targeted in extortion scheme – UPI.com
Billionaire Wes Edens, co-founder of Fortress Investment Group and co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks NBA club, is shown at Sun Valley, Idaho, on July 9, 2015. The Wall Street Journal on Sunday identified Edens as the victim of a billion-dollar extortion plot allegedly hatched by an ex-lover. File Photo by Andrew Gombert/EPA
May 10 (UPI) — Wes Edens, the billionaire co-founder of Fortress Investment Group and an owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, was the target of a billion-dollar extortion scheme allegedly perpetrated by an ex-lover, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.
A spokesman for Edens, 64, confirmed to the newspaper that the financier is the unnamed alleged victim in a federal indictment brought against Changli “Sophia” Luo of New York City.
Edens, one of world’s most successful global investment management firm leaders with Fortress, has developed and owned businesses in real estate, transportation, infrastructure, health care, financial services, media and entertainment.
He is also a high-profile sports team owner, including the Bucks and soccer club Aston Villa of the English Premier League. He is credited turning the Bucks from a perennial cellar dweller into a champion squad over a five-year span, culminating in the 2021 NBA championship.
But he also fell victim to a lurid alleged “sextortion” scheme, his spokesman confirmed to the WSJ, admitting the Edens is the unnamed “Victim 1” cited an indictment filed last year in Manhattan federal court against Luo.
The indictment reportedly accuses her of trying to extort Victim 1 of more than $1 billion by threatening to release videos and photos of them engaged in sex. Prosecutors alleged Luo also threatened to contact the victim’s family members and business partners in a threat to destroy his fortune if he did not pay up.
According to the indictment, Luo was arrested June 14 at JFK International Airport as she tried to board a flight to China, the New York Post reported.
“Mr. Edens will be making no comment on the case as the indictment speaks for itself with respect to the charges against the defendant,” his spokesman told the Journal. “Mr. Edens expects to testify under oath at the upcoming trial.”
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