Maybe the Padres like facing the National League Central Division.
asserted
Padres → like → Division
San Diego took care of some unfinished business against one NL Central opponent this week, now they get the division’s heavyweight.
asserted
they → take → heavyweight
The Padres swept the Cubs out of the NL Wild Card Series on Wednesday and head to Milwaukee for an NLDS matchup against the 103-win Brewers, the team with the best record in baseball this season.
asserted
Padres → sweep → baseball
Despite their dominant regular season, the Brewers won’t be thrilled to see San Diego on Saturday.
asserted
Brewers → see → Saturday
The Padres won four of the six meetings between the teams this season, including a three-game sweep at Petco Park in August.
asserted
Padres → win → August
San Diego is also the hottest team in baseball over the last two months and went 18-6 in September before dismantling MLB’s highest-scoring offense in two games in the wild-card matchup.
asserted
Diego → go → matchup
If the Braves and Dodgers NLDS is billed as a classic David vs. Goliath matchup, then the Padres and Brewers is the unstoppable force meeting an immovable object.
asserted
Padres → bill → object
Milwaukee also went 18-6 in September and has had an identical number of wins as San Diego since the start of August with 38.
asserted
Milwaukee → go → 38
This best-of-five collision is between the two hottest teams left standing.
asserted
collision → leave → teams
Game 1 is set for Saturday night at American Family Field, where the Brewers went 55-26, tied for the best home record in baseball this season.
asserted
Brewers → set → baseball
The Padres counter with a roster loaded with postseason scars and star power.
asserted
Padres → counter → scars
Oh, and we didn’t even mention they have the most terrifying bullpen in the playoffs.
asserted
they → mention → playoffs
The Post’s Michael J. Duarte takes a look at how the Padres and Brewers stack up this October:
asserted
Padres → take → look
At the plate
This is where Milwaukee quietly suffocates teams.
asserted
Milwaukee → suffocate → teams
The Brewers led the majors in batting average (.258) and on-base percentage (.341), scoring 832 runs despite finishing near the bottom of baseball with 154 home runs.
asserted
Brewers → lead → runs
The Brewers don’t need to bludgeon you.
asserted
Brewers → need → you
They peck, scratch, walk, run and generally turn a pitching staff’s evening into a root canal appointment.
Milwaukee also tied for the MLB lead by seeing 3.97 pitches per plate appearance.
asserted
Milwaukee → peck → appearance
That kind of plate discipline is important in October, when knocking an elite starting pitcher out of the game can be as valuable as hitting a home run off them.
asserted
knocking → knock → them
Brice Turang has become the Brewers’ engine.
asserted
Turang → become → ?
He finished with an .816 OPS, 21 homers and 100 RBIs and then hit .361 with a .475 OBP in September.
asserted
He → finish → September
William Contreras drove in an MLB-best 24 runs during the final month.
asserted
Contreras → drive → month
Jackson Chourio gives Milwaukee another dynamic threat near the top.
asserted
Chourio → give → top
The Padres’ full-season .319 OBP doesn’t belong in the same neighborhood, but that number is increasingly misleading.
asserted
number → belong → neighborhood
Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill, Xander Bogaerts and Ty France all surged late, and the Padres had baseball’s hottest offense in September before scoring 12 runs in their two-game domination of Chicago.
asserted
Padres → surge → Chicago
Most importantly, San Diego doesn’t strike out excessively.
asserted
Diego → strike → ?
The Padres ranked 10th in MLB at avoiding strikeouts, a valuable commodity when October pitching starts throwing napalm.
asserted
pitching → rank → napalm
Edge: Brewers
Power
Here is where the Padres can change a game before the beer vendor finishes walking down the first aisle.
asserted
vendor → change → aisle
San Diego hit 183 homers to Milwaukee’s 154, with Manny Machado reaching 30, Merrill 26, Tatis 25 and France 21.
asserted
France → hit → 30
Tatis’ season was especially bizarre: After going homerless for nearly two months, he hit 25 beginning May 30 and carried that heater into October with a leadoff blast against Chicago.
uncertain
he → go → Chicago
Machado followed four pitches later.
asserted
Machado → follow → ?
Bogaerts and Gavin Sheets also went deep for the Padres in the wild-card round.
asserted
Bogaerts → go → round
The Padres also possess a particularly intriguing weapon against Jacob Misiorowski.
asserted
Padres → possess → Misiorowski
Nobody in baseball handled premium velocity better than San Diego.
asserted
Nobody → handle → Diego
They led the majors with a .343 wOBA against fastballs of at least 96 mph.
asserted
They → lead → mph
In September, that number exploded to .441.
asserted
number → explode → .441
The Padres also tied for second in baseball in average bat speed at 72.8 mph.
asserted
Padres → tie → mph
Milwaukee ranked third against 96-plus velocity at .325, so the Brewers aren’t exactly bringing a butter knife to this gunfight, either.
asserted
Brewers → rank → gunfight
He is the soon-to-be NL Cy Young Award winner and a pitching lab experiment that escaped containment.
asserted
that → escape → containment
His fastball routinely reaches triple digits, and he finished with a 1.80 ERA, 252 strikeouts, a 0.80 WHIP and a .157 opponents’ batting average — the lowest recorded by a starter.
asserted
he → reach → starter
Cooper Pratt, SS
In the field
On the diamond, Milwaukee has one of the best defensive second basemen in baseball in Turang, whose 23 defensive runs saved ranked second among all major-league position players.
asserted
runs → have → players
…and 81 more, not listed.
The Aporia
