The Tampa Bay Rays had their chances all night in Game 1, and just about every one of them slipped through their fingers.
Milwaukee beat Tampa Bay 3-2 on Friday night to open the World Series, surviving a late rally that got all the way to the tying run standing on third base before Jonny DeLuca struck out swinging against Trevor Megill. The Brewers now lead the series 1-0, and this one had the feel of a game that could have gone either way the whole time.
The Rays were buried early by a costly defensive break. After Jonathan Aranda and Chandler Simpson singled in the first inning, Junior Caminero lined out hard to third baseman David Hamilton, who doubled Aranda off second. That was the first miss.
The next one hurt even more. Jackson Chourio opened the bottom of the first with a single off Nick Martinez, then Christian Yelich sent a ball to deep center that bounced out of DeLuca’s glove.
Instead of an out, it became an RBI triple. William Contreras followed with a single that skipped off shortstop Taylor Walls into left field, and Milwaukee had a 2-0 lead before Tampa Bay could really settle in.
Martinez steadied himself after that. He struck out Brice Turang and Garrett Mitchell to finish the first, left Sal Frelick stranded at third in the second, and at one point retired eight straight batters. His night ended with five innings, two runs, five hits, no walks and five strikeouts.
On the other side, Jacob Misiorowski brought the heat. The major league ERA leader at 1.80 during the regular season touched 103.5 mph on the first pitch of the game.
Tampa Bay finally cracked him in the fourth, when Aranda walked, Caminero ripped a double to center, and Liam Hicks grounded out to bring Aranda home. DeLuca then flied out, leaving Caminero at third, and the Rays were on the board at 2-1.
But the basepaths kept punishing Tampa Bay. Victor Mesa Jr. singled to start the fifth, moved up, then got thrown out trying to steal third with two outs.
In the bottom half, he helped erase Hamilton at third on a relay after a double to right. In the sixth, Aranda singled off Abner Uribe and was caught stealing second on the same pitch that Simpson struck out on.
That gave the Rays three runners thrown out on the bases in six innings, a brutal number in a one-run game.
Milwaukee didn’t need much more than one extra-base hit to create breathing room. Steven Matz escaped a jam with two outs in the sixth, but he walked Cooper Pratt to begin the seventh. Pratt advanced to second with two outs, and Kevin Kelly entered to face Chourio, who rolled a single into right to make it 3-1.
That run turned out to matter a lot more than it seemed at the time.
Tampa Bay’s bullpen kept the game alive. In the eighth, Garrett Cleavinger and Cole Sulser stranded runners at the corners, with Caminero making three plays at third, including a bunt he fielded cleanly. On the Milwaukee side, Aaron Ashby retired all five batters he faced.
Then came the ninth, and the Rays’ best chance of the night. Díaz grounded out, but Aranda singled for his third hit and Simpson added another. Jorge Mateo ran for Aranda, and the Rays pulled off a double steal before Caminero drew a walk to load the bases.
Hicks then hit a hard grounder to Turang that was ruled a game-ending double play. Tampa Bay challenged, and the call at second was overturned because Pratt’s foot was off the base.
Mateo scored on the play, Simpson moved to third as the tying run, and Caminero advanced to second as the go-ahead run. Hicks, without getting a hit, had driven in both Tampa Bay runs.
A Rays win there would have made that replay review a huge one.
Instead, DeLuca struck out swinging, and the comeback stopped cold.
The Brewers are 5-0 at home this postseason. Game 2 is Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, with Drew Rasmussen set to start against Logan Henderson.
In Other News...
Rays Let World Series Opener Slip After Ninth-Inning Rally
Milwaukee set the tone early and never quite let Tampa Bay fully settle into the opener, cashing in for two runs in the first inning before adding another in the seventh. Jacob Misiorowski was at the center of it all, working five innings and allowing just one run in a 78-pitch outing that gave the Brewers a sturdy start in their 3-2 win. The Rays answered with a run in the fourth and then mounted a push late, but the early hole left them having to chase the game all night.
Tampa Bay finally made things interesting in the ninth with a rally that brought the pressure right to the doorstep of the series opener. Trevor Megill was the one who closed the door for Milwaukee, and the Rays are left to sort through a missed chance after getting within striking distance in the final inning. Misiorowski, meanwhile, also delivered the kind of headline pitch that can linger in a World Series opener, even before the final frame settled the result. [Read more 🡒]
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One name that has surfaced in that orbit is Freddy Peralta, the Tampa Bay Rays right-hander whose October work only added to his appeal. He was excellent in the postseason, covering 16.2 innings with a 1.08 ERA and taking home ALCS MVP honors, but any run at a pitcher with that kind of rsum would come with a steep price tag, and for now it remains more of a speculative fit than a concrete move. [Read more 🡒]
Rays Got One Last World Series Lifeline Before It Slipped Away
For a brief moment in Game 1 at American Family Field, the Rays found the door cracked open in a game that already felt like it was slipping away. Milwaukee had a potential game-ending double play in hand late, only for Tampa Bay to challenge the call and get a reprieve when replay showed Brewers shortstop Cooper Pratt had not quite stayed on the bag.
The extra breath did not turn into a turnaround. Tampa Bay still needed to make the most of one final lifeline, and Milwaukees closer made sure it never became a full-blown rally, finishing the night with a strikeout of Jonny DeLuca to close it out. For the Rays, it was the kind of instant replay swing that can briefly change the mood without changing the result. [Read more 🡒]