As Brandon Woodruff took the mound for the Brewers on Wednesday, he faced a different kind of pressure than on a typical start. Not the heat of building on the league's best record or their division lead over the Cubs, but the opportunity to win hundreds of thousands of free burgers for the people of Wisconsin from the chain George Webb.
George Webb, the founder of the beloved Wisconsin restaurant chain, would famously predict back when Milwaukee only had a minor league team that it would win 12 straight games, and was believed to have declared that if the local team won 12 consecutive games, they would give away free burgers. His son, Jim Webb, would later make the deal official in 1970.
The Brewers came to close to winning free burgers earlier this season when they had an 11-game winning streak from July 6 to July 21, but lost the 12th game 1–0 to the Mariners. They have won free burgers for fans twice, in 1987 and 2018.
With a third opportunity to win free burgers on the line, Woodruff delivered. The two-time All-Star pitched four scoreless innings as Milwaukee got off to a 6–0 lead. The Pirates made things interesting after Woodruff exited, putting up five runs in the fifth and sixth innings, but the Brewers offense responded with six more runs and won 12–5.
“It's awesome. I was telling my wife last night I was more nervous, I wanted to win the burgers for everybody in the stands, including myself," Woodruff told reporters after the game. "It was fun, it's a cool thing. You could tell the energy around today on a day game was a little bit more than usual. Seriously, I wanted to win those burgers bad.”
Brandon Woodruff was nervous before this start.
— Curt Hogg (@CyrtHogg) August 13, 2025
“Seriously, I wanted to win those burgers.” pic.twitter.com/ew06jnNvJr
The Brewers and the fans can celebrate with their free burgers, which will be given out on a date the restaurant plans to announce on Thursday. They can also celebrate a team that not just came through on the free burgers, but holds a league-best 76–44 record as the final month of the season approaches. No team is playing better than the Brewers, who can set their sights on going after their first World Series title.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Brewers' Brandon Woodruff Reacts to Winning Free Burgers for Wisconsin.
