​In no world did the Milwaukee Brewers expect Jake Bauers to emerge as the home run leader by Friday, July 10. Bauers has become a one-man wrecking crew, and his spectacular slide into third base only reinforced his standing as one of the club’s most impactful players. After the game, Brewers manager Pat Murphy acknowledged the moment and the broader significance. While the slide may have gone viral, it underscored a performance that continues to prove his power is elite.
With just three games left before the All-Star break, Bauers sits on 17 homers, four more than Brice Turang and Jackson Chourio, who are tied for second. His 57 RBIs lead the team, and his .368 on-base percentage is also the best mark for Milwaukee. Across 84 games, Bauers is posting a line of .268/.368/.505 with a .873 OPS, marks that are all career highs. In some cases, the gap is substantial; Bauers has logged 287 at-bats this season, whereas the most he has previously totaled in a single year is 372 (back in 2019).
The 30-year-old is putting up a 1.9 WAR, by far the highest figure of his seven-year big league career, eclipsing the 1.0 mark he had not previously reached. At this point in the season, Bauers has already surpassed his prior career high in home runs by five. Time and again, the Brewers have drawn out peak performances from players who were previously mired in slumps, and Bauers is a vivid example in 2026.
“There are bigger goals than my personal stat line for the year,” Bauers told MLB.com. “So I’m trying to keep my head down and stay focused on that.” He added, “We’re not done yet. But I’ve just been impressed with the day-to-day in here. It doesn’t seem like anybody’s losing focus. You don’t hear much complaining about it. You know guys are tired, you know guys are a little bit banged-up, but on the day-to-day side of it, the preparation, you wouldn’t know it. That’s what I’m most proud of as far as the team goes.”
“You can’t find a player, Miz [Jacob Misiorowski], maybe… who has had a bigger impact,” Murphy remarked. “Bauers has had a huge impact this whole year, as well as Brice, as well as William [Contreras], as well as [Kyle] Harrison. They’re all deserving.” With three games left before the All-Star break, Bauers aims to stay hot, carry that momentum into mid-July, and extend his surge beyond.
This season’s surge is just the latest reminder that the Brewers often extract peak performances from players who have struggled at times in the past. Bauers’ breakout run in 2026 stands as a testament to the team’s ability to maximize talent, even when expectations aren’t set for such explosive production. As the All-Star break approaches, Milwaukee will look to sustain this momentum and keep Bauers, and the rest of the lineup, driving the offense forward.