Christian Yelich, Brewers Advance to NLCS After 6-0 Win over Rockies

The Milwaukee Brewers are on to the National League Championship Series for the first time since 2011 after completing the sweep over the Colorado Rockies on Sunday.

Wade Miley threw 4.2 scoreless innings and the bullpen took care of the rest as the Brewers earned the 6-0 win in Game 3 of the National League Division Series. The team is also climbing the record books with its recent hot streak:

Colorado could only manage four hits in what became the second straight shutout in the 3-0 series loss.

Milwaukee Offense Proved It Can Win Without Christian Yelich

Christian Yelich was the talk of baseball over the second half of the season as his red-hot bat helped him become a favorite for the NL MVP award. However, it's clear the Brewers don't need their star to have a big game in order to win.

Milwaukee finished Game 3 with 12 hits from eight players, while Yelich ended up just 0-for-3 with two walks.

The squad managed to score in a variety of different ways, using small ball to bring in the first run, while Jesus Aguilar went with the long ball for his first hit of the series:

Orlando Arcia and Keon Broxton also added back-to-back home runs of their own in the ninth inning.

In the sixth inning, the Brewers took advantage of Rockies mistakes to scratch two more runs across the board.

Meanwhile, there were contributions from some surprising players, including Erik Kratz:

Yelich was a difference-maker in the tiebreaker game against the Chicago Cubs and in Game 1 against the Rockies. We know he can carry his team to a win on any given night and is more than likely to do it again at least once in the NLCS.

However, he has been quiet for the past two games, and Milwaukee hardly slowed down. This could make the team even more dangerous going forward.

Elite Bullpen Could Make Brewers Unstoppable in Playoffs

Older fans might not like the way starters and bullpens are being utilized in today's game, but relievers have become more important than ever, and the Brewers are changing with the times.

Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel provided some eye-popping numbers before the game:

The pen kept it up in Game 3, with five pitchers combining for 4.1 scoreless innings and just one hit allowed. Corbin Burnes was a highlight in the middle with two perfect innings and two strikeouts, earning him the win in the official scorecard.

This group has been overlooked for much of the year without big names like Wade Davis or Aroldis Chapman, but it has been one of the best in the majors all season long. It has also helped take some of the pressure off a rotation that doesn't have a true ace.

Manager Craig Counsell showed his trust in the bullpen Sunday by taking out a successful Miley in the fifth inning.

With so many pitchers capable of shutting down an opposing offense, there is no reason to believe this will stop in the NLCS or even the World Series.

Add this to 11 straight victories, and the Brewers are in great shape to take home their first championship in franchise history.

Rockies Offensive Struggles Should Lead to Offseason Changes

The usual story for the Rockies is they always have great hitting and terrible pitching, and it's the latter that holds them back. That wasn't the case in this series, as the starting pitchers performed well in each game, including German Marquez Sunday with just two runs allowed in five innings.

The problem was the hitting, as Colorado was shut out for the second time in a row, finishing the series with just two total runs in three games while hitting 1-for-17 with runners in scoring position.

In 28 innings this series, the Rockies scored in one of them.

While this could be considered unlucky for a team that finished second in the NL in runs scored, this is an offense that was built around the performance of only two or three players. Per Baseball Reference, only three of the eight regulars during the season had an OPS+ above 100, which is considered league average.

Nolan Arenado and Trevor Story were reliable over the course of a year, but when they aren't hitting (four combined hits in the series), this offense has problems.

While David Dahl provided a much-needed boost down the stretch, Colorado still needs more players who can pick up the slack when the starters struggle.

Whether the team re-signs free agents DJ LeMahieu and Carlos Gonzalez or not, it will need to add offensive firepower if it wants to make a deeper run in October next year.

What's Next?

The Rockies will now start looking toward the 2019 season while the Brewers move onto the NLCS. Milwaukee will host the winner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves in a series that begins Oct. 12.