The Brewers and Rays arrived at October from the same neighborhood but took different roads to get there. Both teams spent the regular season piling up wins and both are still chasing a first World Series title. They also fit the familiar small-market blueprint: smart talent identification, aggressive player development and a knack for doing more with less.
That part is old news in Milwaukee and Tampa Bay. What stands out here is how differently these rosters were built.
Milwaukee leans heavily on its own pipeline. The Brewers have 10 homegrown players on the postseason roster, tied for second-most in this field, and those players have produced 31.4 Wins Above Replacement, Baseball Reference style.
Tampa Bay sits at the other end of that scale with just four homegrown players and 8.9 WAR. Both clubs depended on trades far more than free agency, but the Brewers got far more from their draft and international work, while the Rays did most of their heavy lifting on the trade market.
The Brewers’ draft haul has been especially strong. They have seven drafted players accounting for 23.0 WAR, a total topped only by Cleveland among playoff teams.
Brice Turang, taken in the first round in 2018, and Garrett Mitchell, a first-round pick in 2020, are both key pieces. Sal Frelick, drafted in 2021, has become a three-year starter even if this has been his roughest big league season so far.
Milwaukee also found real value in the junior-college ranks with Jacob Misiorowski, Logan Henderson and Aaron Ashby, and it paid $1.35 million - four times slot value - to land Cooper Pratt in the sixth round in 2023.
Tampa Bay’s draft output is much smaller in number, with only three drafted players on the roster, tied for the second-fewest in the postseason. Even so, Taylor Walls, a third-round pick in 2017, and Chandler Simpson, taken in the second round in 2022, are important contributors. Ian Seymour, a second-round pick in 2020, is the third, though he was roughed up in the American League Championship Series.
Milwaukee also got a major boost from its international signings. The Brewers lead all playoff teams with 8.4 WAR from international amateurs, and it all comes from just three players.
Jackson Chourio, signed out of Venezuela for $1.8 million in 2021, and Luis Lara, another Venezuelan signing at $1.1 million in 2022, give Milwaukee two of its four primary outfielders. Abner Uribe, signed from the Dominican Republic for $85,000 in 2018, is another bargain who turned into real value.
Tampa Bay’s international footprint is much smaller. Jonathan Aranda is the club’s lone international signee, but he has become its second-most dangerous hitter after being purchased from the Mexican League’s Tijuana Toros for $130,000 in 2015.
Free agency barely moved the needle for either club. Tampa Bay has five free agents on its World Series roster, but only Nick Martinez plays a significant role.
He signed in February for a guaranteed $13 million on a one-year deal with a mutual option, then made his first All-Star Game in a 16-year pro career. Milwaukee’s only free agent is backup catcher Gary Sánchez, who signed in February for a guaranteed $1.75 million on a one-year contract with a mutual option.
He has appeared in just one of the Brewers’ eight postseason games this month.
The biggest impact, for both teams, has come through trades. The two League Championship Series MVPs each began their Major League careers with the team they beat before landing on their current club. Jake Bauers went through six organizations before the Yankees sent him to Milwaukee in November 2023 for prospects Jace Avina and Brian Sanchez, a move mainly made to create roster space for New York.
Freddy Peralta’s path was even more winding. He starred in eight seasons with the Brewers, but because he becomes eligible for free agency after the World Series, Milwaukee traded him to the Mets in January along with Tobias Myers for Brandon Sproat and prospect Jett Williams (MIL No.
10). Seven months later, New York dealt him to the Rays for prospects Émilien Pitre (NYM No.
10), Aidan Smith (NYM No. 15) and Gary Gill Hill (NYM No. 16).
No postseason team has gotten more players through trades than Tampa Bay, which brought in 16 and accumulated 31.2 WAR that way. Junior Caminero, acquired from Cleveland for Myers in November 2021, is its best hitter.
Nick Martinez, picked up from Milwaukee in the more balanced Willy Adames deal six months earlier, is its best pitcher. The Rays have also added Liam Hicks, Bryan Baker, Victor Mesa Jr., Tandy Diaz, Tyler Wells, Richie Palacio and Jonny DeLuca, among others.
Milwaukee is close behind. The Brewers have 15 trade acquisitions and rank third in WAR from that route with 21.9.
Along with Bauers, their notable trade additions include William Contreras, their lone position player All-Star, plus Joey Ortiz, D.L. Hall, David Hamilton, Trevor Megill, Chad Patrick and Robert Gasser.
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