What does the Milwaukee Brewers’ trip to the World Series look like from the sidelines?
There's perhaps no one in Milwaukee closer to the team (who is not on the roster) than Brewers TV reporter Sophia Minnaert. She's the team's sideline reporter and has been working with the Brewers since 2013.
Night after night, Minnaert interviews players and management on-field immediately after the game to get their reflections on key plays and capture the moments following big wins and losses.
This year, there have been far more of the former. The Brewers soared to 103 wins in the regular season, clinching a first-seed placement in the postseason. They went on to sweep the Los Angeles Dodgers and claw back the title of National League Champions.
The only team now standing between the Brewers and the title of World Series Champions are the Tampa Bay Rays, a fellow team that has never won a series. The stage is set for an incredible matchup between two small-market teams, far from the dynastic runs of World Series past.
WUWM reporter Katherine Kokal caught up with Minnaert ahead of game one to reflect on the road that's brought this team, and our city, to the biggest stage in baseball.
Here's their conversation, which has been edited for length and clarity.
Katherine Kokal: This is a really exciting week here in Milwaukee. Let's start with a high-level recap of the Brewers season and setting a little bit of context for this moment. What are we looking at?
Sophia Minnaert: It's been unprecedented what this team has accomplished and getting to the World Series for the first time in 44 years, something that just the city and the fanbase and the organization has just been starving for. And you know, this is obviously the ultimate goal — is to get here and win the first World Series for this organization after they lost in 1982. So this has been the best era of Brewers baseball. And now this season has far and away been the best single season that this organization has seen, historically 103 wins for them on the season. They became the first team in the division to win four straight National League Central Division championships. They did so by a wide margin, by 14 games over the Chicago Cubs, who's obviously one of their biggest rivals.
It's just historic. It's been dominant. It's been a complete team effort. There have been some great individual performances along the way to like help them get to this point. Jacob Misiorowski would be at the top of that list. So yeah, it's just it's been an incredible season and certainly I think a team that fans have just really embraced and latched onto.
The Brewers have a group of powerhouse Latin American players. I wanted to talk to you about this specifically because your family is Costa Rican and you do these sideline interviews that include live translating. Can you talk about that? Because it's incredible to watch.
Thank you. Yeah, my mom is Costa Rican, as you said. So I grew up speaking Spanish. My grandparents did not speak any English. So we spent a lot of time there and still do, visiting our family there. That was really, really important to my mom that my brothers and I speak Spanish. So I grew up speaking Spanish, not having any idea that I would go into Major League Baseball and what a gift that would be for me now, working with so many Latin players.
I think for me, it's just making sure that the player is comfortable. And I do really appreciate their trust in me to allow me to do that. Every team has a translator on staff that the players can use and they certainly use. Ours, his name is Daniel de Mondesert and he does an excellent job when they're dealing with the general media. But I appreciate them trusting me to do the one-on-one stuff.
I think as a reporter, I want our fans and our viewers to feel like they get to know these players. I want our players to be able to express themselves freely, to show some personality. They can do that better in their native language in Spanish.
As a Spanish speaker, it's just so cool to hear. I can imagine it means so much to young players who are wondering how to break into baseball and whether baseball is for them. It certainly speaks to the fact that it is.
Yeah, I mean, and I hope so and I hope people understand too. These players are being evaluated every single day that they're on a baseball field, right? I mean, the end goal is winning and performance, and there's a lot of pressure that comes with that.
You look at our team, Luis Lara is a rookie. He's 21 years old. He's from Venezuela. Jackson Chourio is in his third season. He's only 22 years old, also Venezuelan. William Contreras, these are young players in their career. These are kids that realistically should be in college. And here they are, they're getting ready to play in the World Series. So I think anything that we can do to make them feel comfortable and confident and like themselves outside of how they're being evaluated for their performance. The last thing I want is for them to be concerned about how they're presenting themselves publicly, right? To our fanbase, to our viewers. There's a lot of eyeballs on these guys, right? And then in their home countries as well. It's not just here in the States of baseball fans that are following them. So it's a lot for these guys and try to be mindful of that. It's like anything that we can do to make them feel good, feel secure, express themselves like that to me is what it's most important.
So what do you think it's going to be like to play another team seeking their first World Series win?
I think it's going to be great. You know, there's a narrative out there about the small markets and the smaller payrolls and these teams are built pretty similarly. I think it's going to be a fantastic matchup. [The Brewers and the Rays] are the two top seeds. You don't see this very often. You're going to see great pitching, great defense on both sides. There are electric players on both sides, players that bring a lot of energy.
These are two organizations and two fan bases that are so hungry for that first World Series championship. I think both home environments are going to be great. We know American Family Field is going to be just off the rails. I can't even imagine what it's going to be like here this weekend. And then I think, frankly, we're expecting a really good environment at Tropicana Field in Tampa as well. Also a roof, right? So we don't have to worry about weather, which is great. And again, those fans are also hungry. So I think you're going to see two great home atmospheres, great support from the fan bases and like really quality baseball. Like if you're a baseball fan, this is going to be a great series.
