by MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee Brewers, leaders of the National League Central, must continue their push for the playoffs without Christian Yelich.
Yelich is undergoing back surgery on Friday that will end his season and end the 2018 NL MVP’s resurrection season. Yelich led the NL in batting average (.315) and on-base percentage (.406) when he went on the injured list in late July.
But he hasn’t played since being ruled out of a game at Wrigley Field in Chicago on July 23. Yelich has struggled with back problems for several years, and those ailments have landed him on the injured list twice this season.
Yelich, 32, said in a video posted on social media Thursday that the surgery was “just the best option we really had left.”
“It just got to a point where it wasn’t getting better,” Yelich said. “I tried everything I could, I ran out of options and then it was time to make a decision.”
The Brewers announced that Dr. Brandon Rebholz will perform the surgery in Milwaukee.
“There’s really no other way to say it than it sucks,” Yelich said. “It’s awful. But that’s part of the sport. Things like that happen. You get hurt, you get fixed and you get back on the floor. Try to stay as positive as you can.”
Yelich had his best season since his first two years in Milwaukee, winning NL MVP in 2018 and finishing second in the 2019 MVP voting. He was nominated for the All-Star Game for the third time this season and, despite his back problems, had 11 home runs, 42 RBIs and 21 steals in 73 games.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy has praised Yelich all season for his leadership on a young team that has been atop the NL Central since late April despite numerous injuries.
The Brewers will not be able to rely on Yelich as their front-runner in their quest for their first World Series title in franchise history.
Although the Brewers are in position to make their sixth postseason appearance in the last seven years, they have not won a playoff series since 2018. Their only World Series berth came in 1982. With a nine-game lead over Cincinnati and St. Louis in the Central Division, the Brewers have the largest lead of any major league team.
“It’s a great group,” Yelich said. “They’re playing extremely well. I’m excited to watch them and see what they’re going to do. Hopefully they can win the division and get into the playoffs. And then when you get to the postseason, you never know what’s going to happen. You get hot and it could be a cool run. I’m happy for them. We’ll see. Hopefully they can do it. I think they’re going to do well.”
