"Milwaukee, your wait for a division winner is over.

Twenty-nine years after they clinched the American League East title behind Don Sutton in Baltimore, the Brewers wrapped up their first National League Central title Friday night with a 4-1 win over the Florida Marlins at Miller Park.

A crowd of 44,584 rabid fans - the 33rd sellout of the season - was on hand to watch as the Brewers' stars took center stage with the lights at their brightest and a playoff berth on the brink.

And boy, oh boy, did they ever deliver.

There was Prince Fielder, who provided the early offense with a solo home run to right-center in the second inning - a shot that stood as the lone Milwaukee tally until the eighth.

There was Yovani Gallardo, who fell short in his bid to become the first Brewers hurler to win 18 games since 2005 yet was superlative nonetheless, striking out 11 in 71/3 innings.

There was Ryan Braun, who sent a lightning bolt of a home run off the bottom of the scoreboard in left-center in the eighth inning, a three-run shot off Clay Hensley that proved to be the difference.

And then there was the 1-2 punch of Francisco Rodriguez and John Axford. "K-Rod" took the ball from Gallardo and struck out both batters he faced, then Axford closed the door for his team-record-tying 44th save.

But the win was only part of the deal for the Brewers and their fans, who had to wait another 25 minutes before the Chicago Cubs did their part, beating the St. Louis Cardinals to drop the magic number from one to zero."