The Milwaukee Brewers' 1998 season was the first season for the franchise as a member of the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

. The Brewers finished in fifth in the

NL Central The National League Central is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was created in 1994, by moving two teams from the National League West (the Cincinnati Reds and the Houston Astros) and three teams from the National League ...

, 28 games behind the Houston Astros, with a record of 74 wins and 88 losses. Before the 1998 regular season began, two new teams—the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The ...

and

Tampa Bay Devil Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home ve ...

—were added by Major League Baseball. This resulted in the American League and National League having 15 teams. However, in order for MLB officials to continue primarily intraleague play, both leagues would need to carry a number of teams that was divisible by two, so the decision was made to move one club from the AL Central to the NL Central. This realignment was widely considered to have great financial benefit to the club moving. However, to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, Commissioner (then club owner) Bud Selig decided another team should have the first chance to switch leagues. The choice was offered to the Kansas City Royals, who ultimately decided to stay in the American League. The choice then fell to the Brewers, who, on November 6, 1997, elected to move to the National League. Had the Brewers elected not to move to the National League, the Minnesota Twins would have been offered the opportunity to switch leagues. Fernando Vina became the first Brewer named as an National League All-Star.

Offseason

* December 1, 1997:

Jack Voigt John David Voigt (born May 17, 1966) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and the current Coach (baseball), hitting coach for the Las Vegas 51s. He played all or part of seven seasons in the majors, from 1992 until 1998, for the ...

was released by the Brewers. * December 8, 1997:

Mike Fetters Michael Lee Fetters (born December 19, 1964) is an American professional baseball coach. He is currently the bullpen coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in MLB for eight teams during his 16-year career as ...

Ben McDonald Larry Benard McDonald (born November 24, 1967) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. The first overall pick in the 1989 MLB Draft, McDonald played for the Baltimore Orioles and Milwaukee Brewers from 1989 through 1997. Baseball career Col ...

, and

Ron Villone Ronald Thomas Villone, Jr. (born January 16, 1970) is a former Major League Baseball (MLB) left-handed relief pitcher and current minor league coach. Villone played for 12 teams in his career, tied for 3rd all time with pitcher Mike Morgan and o ...

were traded by the Brewers to the

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive Fi ...

for

Marquis Grissom Marquis Deon Grissom (born April 17, 1967) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Montreal Expos, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and ...

and

Jeff Juden Jeffrey Daniel Juden (born January 19, 1971) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, Montreal Expos, Cleveland Indians, Milwauke ...

. * January 14, 1998: Bob Hamelin was signed as a free agent by the Brewers. * March 11, 1998:

Mark Watson Mark Andrew Watson (born 13 February 1980) is a British comedian and novelist. Early life Watson was born in Bristol to a Welsh mother and English father. He has younger twin sisters and a brother, Paul. He attended Bristol Grammar School, ...

was traded by the Brewers to the Cleveland Indians for Ben McDonald.

Regular season

Season standings

Record vs. opponents

Notable transactions

* June 2, 1998: J. J. Putz was drafted by the Brewers in the 17th round of the

1998 Major League Baseball draft The 1998 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft of high school and college baseball players, was held on June 2 and 3, 1998. A total of 1445 players were drafted over the course of 50 rounds. First round selections ...

, but did not sign. * June 24, 1998: Dave Weathers was selected off waivers by the Milwaukee Brewers from the Cincinnati Reds. * July 23, 1998: Doug Jones was traded by the Brewers to the Cleveland Indians for

Eric Plunk Eric Vaughn Plunk (born September 3, 1963) is an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball from 1986 through 1999. He pitched for the Oakland Athletics, New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians, and Milwaukee Brewers. ...

. * July 31, 1998:

Mike Kinkade Michael Arthur Kinkade (born May 6, 1973) is an American college baseball coach and former Major League Baseball player. He played for the New York Mets, Baltimore Orioles, and Los Angeles Dodgers between 1998 and 2003, and is currently an assista ...

was traded by the Brewers to the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

for

Bill Pulsipher William Thomas Pulsipher (born October 9, 1973) is an American former professional baseball player. Pulsipher, a left-handed pitcher, played in Major League Baseball for the New York Mets, Milwaukee Brewers, Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox and ...

. * August 7, 1998:

was selected off waivers from the Brewers by the

Anaheim Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team h ...

Roster

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

''Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases''

Other batters

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; Avg. = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases''

Pitching

Starting pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Other pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Relief pitchers

''Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts''

Farm system

The Brewers' farm system consisted of eight minor league affiliates in 1998. The Brewers operated a

Venezuelan Summer League The Venezuelan Summer League (VSL) was a professional baseball sports league that operated in Venezuela from 1997 to 2015, primarily in the state of Carabobo. Teams in the league served as academies for Major League Baseball (MLB) organizations, a ...

team as a co-op with the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The fran ...

and

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

. VSL Guacara 1 won the Venezuelan Summer League championship.

References

1998 Milwaukee Brewers team
at ''Baseball-Reference''
1998 Milwaukee Brewers team page at www.baseball-almanac.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:1998 Milwaukee Brewers Season Milwaukee Brewers seasons Milwaukee Brewers season

Milwaukee Brew Milwaukee Brew (foaled January 31, 1997 in Kentucky) is an American Thoroughbred racehorse best known as one of only three horses to win back-to-back runnings of the Santa Anita Handicap. He is retired and moved to Old Friends Equine in 2020. B ...