Though the Cincinnati Reds snapped their 14-game winning streak and kept them from sweeping a fifth straight series, the Brewers are anchored in the No. 1 spot on all MLB power boards this week. Here are a few national observations why:

On the other hand, via Clay Davenport's third-order wins and losses, which project a team's winning percentage based on underlying statistics adjusted for quality of opponents, the Brewers are neck-and-neck with the Cubs,

Brewers coaches and front office officials have spent hours in meetings and Zoom sessions over recent days discussing how to get through this particularly burdensome stretch of the schedule without blowing out the pitching on the cusp of a pennant push.