ESPN Panel Picks Brewers' Chourio for Dual MVP Run in October

ESPN's panel of baseball writers is wagering that Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Jackson Chourio will win both League Championship Series MVP and World Series MVP this October, according to ESPN's early hot-takes roundup published one week into the 2026 postseason.

What has Chourio done so far in the division series?

Two games into Milwaukee's division series, Chourio has hit one home run and driven in four runs, ESPN reports. Writer Tristan Cockcroft says that production marks a turn from Chourio's regular-season role as a table-setter into a run producer. "Why doubt the Milwaukee Brewers now?" Cockcroft writes in the piece.

Why does ESPN think Chourio could sweep both MVP awards?

Cockcroft's prediction would make Chourio the 10th player in MLB history to win LCS MVP and World Series MVP in the same postseason, per ESPN. The panel's reasoning leans on Chourio's early production and his standing as one of the sport's rising stars, the network's writers note. Cockcroft also pairs Chourio with teammate Brice Turang, comparing the Brewers' current young core to the franchise's Hall of Fame duo of Paul Molitor and Robin Yount, according to ESPN.

Does any ESPN writer doubt Milwaukee's run?

Not entirely, but the predictions carry a catch. Cockcroft, who ESPN describes as a self-declared "Brewers believer," also forecasts that Milwaukee will trail at some point in every playoff game it plays this October — and still finish as champion. The two predictions together describe a team ESPN's panel expects to win uncomfortably rather than comfortably.

What other storylines is ESPN tracking through one week of playoffs?

ESPN's roundup frames its predictions around a league-wide check-in after one week of play, noting that all four American and National League division series had each played two games as of publication. The outlet's headline also flags open questions about New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge going without a home run so far and about Shohei Ohtani's October performance, though the panel's specific reasoning on those two players is not detailed in the excerpt reviewed for this report.

What should fans watch next?

ESPN's panel cautions that small sample sizes define early October. The network's writers note that the postseason's compressed schedule, layered onto a 162-game regular season, can produce results that look decisive after two games and look very different by the League Championship Series. ESPN's own framing: some predictions will run "red-hot" by the time a champion is crowned, others will go "ice-cold."

Milwaukee's division series continues as the Brewers try to protect an early edge built on Chourio's bat. ESPN's full breakdown of predictions across all eight remaining playoff teams, including home-field rankings and additional hot takes from its panel, is available at ESPN.com.

By the numbers

• 1 home run and 4 RBIs for Jackson Chourio through two division-series games, per ESPN.
• 10th player in MLB history to win both LCS MVP and World Series MVP, if Cockcroft's prediction holds, per ESPN.
• 2 games completed in each of the four division series as of ESPN's Oct. 6 publication.