The Brewers' Run Without Christian Yelich Should Scare Rest of MLB

Many fans surely thought that the Milwaukee Brewers' postseason hopes were dead when reigning NL MVP Christian Yelich fractured his kneecap on Sept. 10.

Instead, the team went 12-2 since Yelich went down (19-4 overall in September) and clinched a playoff birth as the second Wild Card team. And now, the rest of MLB should fear this latest October edition of the Brew Crew.

If the Brewers beat the Nationals in the NL Wild Card game, they will face the mighty Dodgers in a best-of-five series. While that may sound daunting, Milwaukee took LA to a Game 7 in last year's NLCS. And their current winning tear is impossible to ignore.

The team's playoff experience combined with their hot play means they should not be taken lightly by any team, no matter how mighty. They simply have not missed a beat despite Yelich's 44 homers, 97 RBI, 1.100 OPS and 30 steals leaving the lineup.

Guys like Ryan Braun, Mike Moustakas, Eric Thames and Keston Hiura have stepped up and helped the Brewers overcome Yelich's absence. There's no reason these bats can't take advantage of the weak bullpens that a number of NL playoff teams -- including Washington and LA -- are stuck with.

The knock against the Brewers may be their own pitching staff, but the postseason is a small sample size. You just have to get hot and stay hot at the right time. And if anything's for certain, it's that the Brewers are a threat and won't go down quietly.