It's Opening Day of the 2018 Major League Baseball season, and the Milwaukee Brewers are on the road to kick it off against the San Diego Padres.

The Brewers went 86-76 last year, finishing in second place in the National League Central Division, coming up just shy of a Wild Card playoff berth. It was an unexpectedly successful campaign for a Milwaukee team that began 2017 in the midst of an organizational rebuild, then found itself in first place midway through the season, before a second-half offensive slump killed its postseason hopes.

During the winter, the Brewers made a couple of major moves to better their bats, acquiring talented leftfielder Christian Yelich in a blockbuster trade from the Miami Marlins on Jan. 25 and signing veteran centerfielder Lorenzo Cain to a five-year, $80 million free-agent contract about an hour later. The moves gave Milwaukee a glut of outfielders, but general manager David Stearns decided not to address the club’s starting rotation in the offseason.

Last year, nine Brewers were on a 25-man Opening Day roster for the first time, and they were one of the youngest teams in the majors. This season, its rebuilding plan sped up significantly and looking to contend now, Milwaukee has just three players who are making their first career Opening Day roster, and the team’s average age of 28.4 is the 15th-oldest in the league.  

The Brewers’ much-anticipated home opener is Monday, April 2 at Miller Park, but before you start tailgating, get to know and interact with the 2018 team here.

Starting pitchers

Chase Anderson, RHP

Stat: Went 12-4 with a 2.74 ERA in 25 starts in 2017, the best season of his career.
Know: His father Jim played football and participated in track and field (shot put and discus) at the University of Florida, and his mother Deborah played basketball at Florida State University.
Interact: @ChaseAnderson87

Jhoulys Chacín, RHP

Stat: Went 13-10 with a 3.89 ERA in 32 starts for San Diego last year, with a career-high 153 strikeouts.
Know: The 30-year-old from Venezuela pronounces his name "yo-LEASE sha-SEEN."
Interact: @Jhoulys45

Zach Davies, RHP

Stat: Led the Brewers with 17 wins in 2017, going 17-9 with a 3.90 ERA.
Know: The Washington native is a self-described Seattle Seahawks fan.
Interact: @zdavies3

Brent Suter, LHP

Stat: In 22 outings, including 14 starts as an injury fill-in, went 3-2 with a 3.42.
Know: Graduated from Harvard University with a degree in environmental science and public policy.
Interact: @bruter24

Brandon Woodruff, RHP

Stat: In big-league debut last year on Aug. 4, pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings and struck out six in a win over Tampa Bay.
Know: The Mississippi native enjoys hunting, fishing and golf.
Interact: @B_Woody24

Relief pitchers

Matt Albers, RHP

Stat: In 63 appearances for Washington, went 7-2 with a 1.62 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 61 innings.
Know: The 35-year-old veteran had the best season of his career last year, with a 0.85 WHIP and .166 opponent batting average.

Jacob Barnes, RHP

Stat: Recorded 80 strikeouts and just 33 walks in 72 innings, with an opponents’ batting average of .215 last season.
Know: Had a 13.00 ERA in spring training last year, before posting a 2.13 ERA in 13 regular-season outings in April.
Interact: @j_barnes30

Oliver Drake, RHP

Stat: Went 3-5 with a 4.44 ERA in 61 appearances last year after being acquired from Baltimore.
Know: Attended the Naval Academy, majoring in quantitative economics.

Josh Hader, LHP

Stat: Ranked second among National League relievers last season with a .156 opponents' average, while posting a 2.08 ERA in 35 games.
Know: Threw his mid-90s fastball more than 80 percent of the time in 2017.
Interact: @jhader17

Jeremy Jeffress, RHP

Stat: In 180 appearances with the Brewers, he is 13-3 with a 2.56 earned run.
Know: This is his third separate stint with Milwaukee, which drafted Jeffress in the first round in 2006.
Interact: @JMontana41

Corey Knebel, RHP

Stat: After taking over as closer in May, he tied for the NL lead with 76 appearances in 2017, compiling a 1.78 earned run average with 126 strikeouts and 39 saves in 45 chances.
Know: One of his hobbies is brewing a beer he calls "Bird Brew," which is a reference to his college nickname, "Bird Dog."
Interact: @coreyknebel29

Catchers

Jett Bandy

Stat: He was batting .188 on March 15, before getting hot and finishing spring training with a .300 average and a .391 on-base percentage.
Know: His father, John, a former bartender, worked on the set of the 1988 movie "Cocktail," teaching actor Tom Cruise his character's signature bottle flip.

Manny Pina

Stat: He threw out 36 percent of base-stealers and picked off another seven runners on the basepaths from behind the plate.
Know: Pina made the Opening Day roster for the first time last season after 11 years in the minors.

Infielders

Jesus Aguilar, first base

Stat: He smashed 16 home runs in just 279 at-bats last year while platooning at first base.
Know: Aguilar is considered one of the most extroverted and well-liked players in the Brewers’ clubhouse.
Interact: @JAguilarMKE

Orlando Arcia, shortstop

Stat: He hit 15 homers and stole 14 bases, while leading NL shortstops in chances and double plays in 2017.
Know: Arcia's older brother, Oswaldo, is a former Major League outfielder who now plays in Japan.
Interact: @orlandoarcia9

Ji-Man Choi, first base

Stat: He put up a .409/.518/.727 slash line in 56 plate appearances during spring training.
Know: Choi claims to have been visited by ghosts at Milwaukee’s Pfister Hotel and says he enjoyed it.

Hernan Perez, utility

Stat: He hit .259 with 14 homers, 51 RBI and 13 stolen bases in 2017.
Know: A superutility man, Perez played in 136 games last year with 96 starts at six different positions – 34 in left field, 17 at third base, 16 in right field, 16 at second base, 10 in center field and five at shortstop.

Travis Shaw, third base

Stat: Led the Brewers in home runs (31), RBI (101) and offensive WAR (3.7) last year.
Know: His father is former All-Star Jeff Shaw, who pitched in the majors from 1990 to 2001.
Interact: @travis_shaw21

Eric Sogard, second base

Stat: After getting called up in May last season, over a six-week stretch, he hit .331 with a .438 OBP, 24 runs scored and 22 walks to just 20 strikeouts in 136 at-bats.
Know: Wears protective eye goggles during games, which started a "Nerd Power" trend among fans when he was with Oakland in 2013.
Interact: @EricSogard

Eric Thames, first base

Stat: In 2017, during his first month with the Brewers, Thames set franchise records for home runs (11) and runs (28) in April.
Know: He teamed with MillerCoors last year to brew his own beer, Beerded Brewer IPA.
Interact: @EricThames

Jonathan Villar, second base

Stat: He led the majors in stolen bases in 2016 with 62, but had just 23 last season.
Know: Villar's mother Rosa was a softball player who now lives in Italy.
Interact: @JRvillar6

Outfielders

Ryan Braun, left field

Stat: He is the Brewers’ all-time leader in home runs with 302.
Know: After playing almost his entire major-league career in the outfield, Braun will play some games, including Opening Day, at first base this season.

Lorenzo Cain, center field

Stat: Last year, he had a .300/.363/.440 slash line with 15 home runs, 49 RBI and 26 stolen bases in 155 games, and also was an AL Gold Glove award finalist.
Know: A 17th-round draft pick by Milwaukee in 2004, Cain was traded to Kansas City in 2010 for Zach Greinke, made two World Series appearances with the Royals and was reunited with the Brewers in January.

Domingo Santana, right field

Stat: He hit .278 with 30 home runs, 85 RBI and 15 stolen bases last year.
Know: Santana was among the major-league leaders with 178 strikeouts in 2017, but he also drew 73 walks, second-highest total on the Brewers.

Christian Yelich, left field

Stat: One of baseball’s best all-around players, he ranked in the National League top 10 in runs, at-bats, hits, doubles and walks last year, while leading Major League center fielders in fielding percentage and ranking fourth in total chances, as he committed just one error.
Know: Yelich was acquired by Milwaukee in the trade that sent highly ranked prospects Lewis Brinson, Monte Harrison, Isan Diaz and Jordan Yamamoto to Miami.
Interact: @ChristianYelich

Manager

Craig Counsell

Stat: He has a career managerial record of 220-241 (.477 winning percentage).
Know: A Whitefish Bay native, Counsell spent six seasons with the Brewers as a player.