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Baseball talk? I thought this was a football website! What can the Seahawks learn from the Mariners and Brewers? As the Seahawks look to “run it forward,” there are lessons to be learned from the Mariners and Brewers. Don’t worry, I’ll tie it all together by the end. As some of you may remember, I’m a Seattle Seahawks aficionado born, raised, and living in the great state of Wisconsin. Even if I’m not a Cheesehead like most of my fellow Wisconsinites, I am a fan of the Milwaukee Brewers. I’m guessing that a good number of you reading this follow the Seattle Mariners who just so happen to be opening a series against the Brewers. Now, I’m not an expert on the Mariners, but feel like I’ve gained enough knowledge through following the Seattle sports scene to be dangerous. The Brewers and Mariners actually have quite a bit in common - and no, I’m not talking about the Seattle Pilots relocating to Milwaukee to become the Brewers. We lost the Braves to Atlanta in 1965, so there’s some shared history there. The Brewers, like the Mariners, have never won a World Series, though they did appear in one, losing to the St. Louis Cardinals in 1982. The Brewers and San Diego Padres are the oldest MLB franchises to never win a World Series. Both the Brewers and Mariners made the Championship Series for their respective Leagues in 2025, each falling short. We feel your pain, Mariners fans. Yet, as the two teams prepare to square off in 2026, they couldn’t be in more different positions. The Mariners have been highly disappointing, even though the division has been within their reach for pretty much the entire season, with the Houston Astros currently leading the AL West at 63-62. Flip over to the National League with the Brewers coming off winning three of four games on the road against the Los Angeles Dodgers to push their record to 77-48 - the best record in all of Major League Baseball. Mariners fans will be able to watch the Brewers play, seeing what makes them so successful. So, what is that, and how can the Seahawks learn from it? It’s pretty simple, and is actually what the Seahawks leaned on in 2025 as they won the Super Bowl: identity and belief. Outside of a little spurt of success in the mid to late 2000s, the Brewers have been a historically middling franchise. Former Brewers player and hometown boy Craig Counsell took over as manager in 2015, and things changed. From 2015-2023, Counsell won over 700 games, leading the Brewers to the playoffs five times with three NL Central division titles. After 2023, Counsell bolted for the division rival Chicago Cubs on a huge (for a manager) contract. His bench coach, Pat Murphy, replaced him as the manager. At the time, I figured Murphy would just be a fall guy, and last a season or two like many of the former managers. Boy, I couldn’t have been more wrong! All Murphy did was post two consecutive 90-win seasons, set the Brewers franchise record for wins in a season, take home two NL Central Division titles, and be named NL Manager of the Year for both 2024 and 2025. He’s on pace to potentially make that three in a row in 2026 by leaning hard into pitching, defense, and playing small ball. In a league where the home run is king, the Brewers consistently win by getting guys on base and moving them over whether that’s from swiping bags or sac bunts. The best word to describe their play is “pesky.” The Brewers spray the ball to the gaps, take the extra base, and work the count. They have fantastic starting pitching and a shutdown bullpen. Milwaukee prioritizes playing great defense, saving runs in that capacity. They also love playing for Murph. He’s an old-school type of manager, getting a little testy at times. However, he’s able to relate to the players and get them to fully buy into his vision. Contrast that with what I’ve gathered about the Mariners situation. They seem like a ship without a rudder, no clear direction or vision. The talent level on the Brewers roster isn’t leagues above the Mariners. In fact, you can argue that the Mariners actually have more talent in some areas. However, the Brewers believe in their leadership and are executing the vision of their manager to near-perfection. THAT is what the Seahawks and Mike Macdonald can take from the Brewers and Mariners, a renewed conviction in their way of life. The Mariners and Brewers were both on the precipice of greatness in 2025, yet are traveling in opposite directions in 2026. Milwaukee’s continued focus on playing Pat Murphy’s style of ball has them in position to take another step forward this season, proving the importance of a strong culture and belief system. This is another example that Mike Macdonald and the Seahawks can look to in 2026 as they prepare to “run it forward.”