The Tampa Bay Rays opened the 2026 World Series with a frustrating 3-2 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field, and the story was all too familiar: missed chances.
Tampa Bay couldn’t cash in when the pressure was highest, finishing 0 for 6 with runners in scoring position. The Rays managed only seven hits and struck out nine times, a rough night for an offense that never found the big swing it needed.
Even against Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski, the Rays did enough to keep the ball in play. Misiorowski struck out only three in five innings, but Tampa Bay still couldn’t turn contact into production. That lack of timely hitting ended up defining the night.
Nick Martinez gave the Rays a start that was good enough to win if the bats had shown up. He worked five innings, allowed five hits and struck out five, but gave up two earned runs. Milwaukee struck first in the bottom of the opening inning when Christian Yelich lined an RBI triple to score Jackson Chourio, then Wilson Contreras followed with an RBI single to bring Yelich home and make it 2-0.
Steven Matz took over in the sixth and pitched two innings, but he also allowed a run. The Brewers’ final scoring play came when Chourio delivered an RBI single to score Cooper Pratt, giving Milwaukee the run it would ultimately need.
Tampa Bay still had one last crack at it. With one out in the top of the ninth, the Rays loaded the bases, and Liam Hicks hit what looked like a game-ending double play.
The play was overturned after replay review, with the runner ruled safe at second. The rally didn’t last long after that, though, as Brewers reliever Trevor McGill struck out Jonny Deluca with runners in scoring position to end it.
The win was Milwaukee’s first in a World Series since the last time it appeared in 1982, over 16,000 days ago.
Drew Rasmussen is set to start Game 2 for Tampa Bay against Logan Henderson. First pitch on Saturday is scheduled for 8 pm Eastern.
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 🡒]
Padres Rotation Reset Could Depend On One Costly October-Proven Arm
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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 🡒]