Category: Baseball

Friday night was the second scrimmage of the third week of fall ball for LSU. It was the first intra-squad of the session that was closed to the public, as they hosted members of the Coaches Committee and players’ families. Media was allowed to attend, though, so I was able to get another full night of observations.

Although a few pitchers had some success on Thursday night, the offense was really good. Like I had mentioned, 10 of the 18 starters drove in at least one RBI and while there was only one ball that left the stadium for a homerun, it seemed like productive at-bat after productive at-bat.

On Friday, pitching fought back. Landon Hood and Danny Lachenmayer were two of the names that had very good outings, which is a continuation of what we’ve seen from them for the past three weeks. I firmly believe that Hood is a name to watch to land in that all-important weekend rotation come the spring.

Opposite of Hood was two-way stud, Lucas Nawrocki, who started on the mound after hitting a homer the night before. That’s two weeks in a row that he’s done that. He had his moments of struggle, but still flashed plenty of signs to be excited about.

Dylan Minnatee, Parker Loew, and Angel Laya each notched 2 hits, but the big swings were very limited against Nate Yeskie’s pitching staff.

Before we get going, I’ll list off the lineups for each team and who pitched. Cumulative stats for Thursday night are included. We’ll then transition to some bullet point notes.

Lineups

Gold (visitors)

1.) CF – Nate Davis-Cleary (0-4)

2.) 2B – Cade Kurland (1-3, BB)

3.) RF – Angel Laya (2-4)

4.) C – Cade Arrambide (1-3, BB)

5.) 1B – Mason Braun (0-1, 2 BB)

6.) SS – Dawson Park (1-2, RBI/BB)

7.) 3B – Jack Ruckert (0-2, RBI/BB)

8.) DH – Jordan Martinez (1-3, RBI)

9.) LF – Eddie Yamin (0-3)

SP – Landon Hood (3.0 IP/3 H/0 R/4 K/1 BB/61% strikes/6-11 1st pitch strikes)

RP – Cooper Williams (2.2 IP/4 H/2 R/3 K/3 BB/57% strikes/8-14 1st pitch strikes)

Purple (home)

1.) CF – Jason Wachs (1-3, RBI)

2.) C – Omar Serna (0-3)

3.) SS – Steven Milam (0-1, 2 BB)

4.) LF – Dominic Santarelli (0-3)

5.) 2B – Parker Loew (2-2, RBI/BB)

6.) 3B – Malachi Washington (1-3, RBI)

7.) 1B – Dylan Minnatee (2-2, 2B/BB)

8.) RF – William Patrick (0-2)

9.) DH – Lucas Nawrocki (1-2, 2B/RBI)

SP – Lucas Nawrocki (1.2 IP/1 H/1 R/3 K/4 BBs/40% strikes/1-9 1st pitch strikes)

RP – Kaden Smith (2.0 IP/3 H/1 R/1 K/0 BB/67% strikes/5-9 1st pitch strikes)

RP – Danny Lachenmayer (3.0 IP/2 H/0 R/5 K/2 BB/60% strikes/9-13 1st pitch strikes)

Scrimmage notes

• Lucas Nawrocki struggled with his command out of the gate. He struck out 2 in the 1st inning, but walked 3, which led to them calling the inning with just 2 outs. After he walked the leadoff in the 2nd, he locked in. Velocity was up to 96, but it was his offspeed that struggles, leading to plenty of pitches in the dirt, including some wild pitches. After he finished pitching, he walked down to the batting cages with a bat and eventually came in to the game. He hit an opposite field double to drive in a run in his second plate appearance.
• Landon Hood was REALLY good, once again, featuring his 4-pitch mix and getting up to 96. He threw 14 pitches in his 2nd inning with 9 strikes, then had a quick 1-2-3 with the help of a double play turned by Ruckert to Kurland to Braun.
• Jack Ruckert’s stat line doesn’t jump off the page tonight, but it was another game in which he found a way to be productive at the plate. His first AB was with a runner on 3rd and less than 2 outs and he did what he’s supposed to do by driving in a run on a hard hit ground ball out.
• Omar Serna threw out Dawson Park, adding to his list of caught stealing.
• Speaking of throwing runners out, Cade Arrambide gunned down Parker Loew twice tonight. Both catchers have thrown out quite a few guys through these early fall scrimmages.
• Dylan Minnatee continues to make noise at the plate, ripping a double deep in to the right-center gap. Davis-Cleary actually almost made a gold glove play because of his elite speed, but was unable to corral a tough sliding catch on a well-hit ball.
• Kaden Smith had probably his best outing in 3 weeks. He was up to 95 and showed grit. In his first inning, he got 2 quick outs, but gave up back to back singles to Laya and Arrambide, then started Braun 3-0. He fought all the way back with 4 straight strikes to get out of the inning without damage.
• Jason Wachs has a pretty good arm. He almost threw out Park trying to tag from 2nd with a good throw from CF, but Washington was unable to reel in the short up in the dirt. That’s something that will take time to get used to for the former outfielder.
• Dawson Park manufactured a run mostly by himself by singling and stealing 2nd with 0 outs, then moved to 3rd on that flyout to Wachs, which put him in position to score on a groundball with the infield in.
• Cooper Williams was up and down. He first came in and got 2 quick outs, but then issued a 2-out walk on 5 pitches. He immediately tried a pick off, but missed his target, allowing the runner to move in to scoring position, which promptly bit him on a single that drove the runner in.
• Danny Lachenmayer threw 9 of his 10 pitches for strikes in his first inning of work. His command slipped to start his second inning, walking 2 of the first 3, but then struck out Martinez and Yamin to get back on track. He went right back to pumping strikes in his third inning, holding strong through 50 pitches.
• Cade Kurland flashed his former shortstop defensive skills on a tough pick and throw up the middle.
• Cooper Williams breaking balls to lefties looked unhittable, but it’s the righties that he needs to find his out pitch for.

Player of the night

Although Landon Hood was very good, I’m going with Danny Lachenmayer. He struck out 5 threw 3 innings of work for the second week in a row.

As far as a positional player of the game, Dylan Minnatee and his 2-2, including a nice double, were probably two of the best swings of the night.

Next up

LSU has one more intra-squad game for the week and potentially for the fall session. With the next 3 weeks being their exhibitions against Samford, Troy, and SLU, I’m not sure if they will have any more public scrimmages. It’s possible, but we will keep you guys informed.

As for this weekend, they return on Sunday at 1 pm for first pitch. It’s back to being open to the public with gates opening at 12:45 and entry/parking free.

Below is my video recap that I do after every single game. Follow me on X @DCBilliotJr for much more!

New York Post | Greg Joyce: With the World Series just getting underway, there are not yet any roster moves to be made. However on Friday, the Yankees came closer to a big one on the coaching staff. Reports are that the Yankees are close to a deal with pitching coach Matt Blake to retain him going forward. Under Blake, the Yankees had arguably the best rotation in the majors this year and have regularly turned less-than-heralded pitchers into crucial bullpen arms.

MLB Trade Rumors | Mark Polishuk: After another disappointing exit in the ALDS, the Yankees have some decisions to make across the roster this offseason. Here’s an overall outlook of who’ll definitely be back, who might not be, and the choices the Yankees will face over the winter.

Japan Times | Jason Coskrey: Yankee legend and 2009 World Series MVP Hideki Matsui is getting back into the baseball ranks as he has been named manager of the NPB’s Yomiuri Giants. Before coming over to MLB, Matsui was a legendary player for the Giants, who are considered the Yankees of Japan. Debuting as a teenager and spending a decade in Tokyo, he won three MVP awards and three Japan Series championships, clubbing 50 homers during his final season with the Giants in 2002. Now, he’ll look to lead the team to similar heights as their skipper. Fellow former Yankee Masahiro Tanaka is a member of the Giants’ playing roster. Congrats to Godzilla!

Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Jacob Misiorowski threw the fastest recorded pitch in World Series history as his side began the best-of-seven season finale with a win.

The right-hander played a starring role in the 3-2 win at home to the Tampa Bay Rays, in the first match of the 122nd World Series.

It is only the second time in more than a century that neither side contesting the World Series has won the title before.

A sell-out crowd watched the Brewers in only their second appearance in the finale of the Major League Baseball season, and their first since losing to the St Louis Cardinals in 1982.

Milwaukee's American Family Field has 41,900 seats but with standing-room-only tickets available for the 'Fall Classic', 43,250 fans packed in to see the game.

"It was amazing - just to have the city behind me, it means the world, we couldn't ask for anything better," said Misiorowski.

The Brewers host the second match of the best-of-seven series on Saturday before the teams move to Florida for three games, then return to Milwaukee for the final two matches, if needed.

Misiorowski, 24, became the youngest starter since 1997 to win a World Series opener, after restricting the Rays to just one run in five innings.

His fastest pitch at 103.5 mph beat the previous mark of 103.2 mph set by Aroldis Chapman of the Chicago Cubs in 2016 - though speeds have only been recorded since 2008.

Brewers designated hitter Christian Yelich also played a key role, scoring one run and driving in another as they took a 3-1 lead.

The Rays added one run in the final inning and had a runner on third base as they pushed to level the score, but Milwaukee closed out victory.

"It feels great. The guys settled in right away and did a great job," Yelich said. "We've still got a ways to go but nice to get that first one."

The Brewers made the World Series by beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-0 to claim the National League title, while the Rays clinched the American League pennant with a 4-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians to reach the post-season finale for only the third time.

The Rays lost to the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2008 World Series and the Dodgers in 2020, but manager Kevin Cash took solace from the fact that they tested the Brewers on Friday.

"We came up a little bit short, but there's some benefit maybe from a loss," said Cash.

MILWAUKEE — Trevor Megill induced the game-ending double play Friday night and screamed. The sellout crowd roared. Fireworks went off. Brewers players hugged. GM Matt Arnold was high-fiving friends and employees in his suite.

The Brewers had just won Game 1 over the Tampa Bay Rays, their first World Series victory in 44 years.

Then, as Megill stomped off the mound, he noticed the umpiring crew starting to huddle.

The Tampa Bay Rays were challenging.

“I didn’t think it was a big deal," Megill said. “It was the last out of the game, so what did they have to lose? I thought they were just challenging the call at first base.

Nuh-uh.

The Rays were challenging the play at second too. Rookie shortstop Cooper Pratt’s foot barely lifted off the base as he turned what appeared to be the game-ending double play.

After all the pomp and circumstance, after all the anticipation, the Milwaukee Brewers finally hosted a World Series game for the first time in 44 years, and my goodness did it live up to the hype with a 3-2 Brewers victory.

In the first inning, Jacob Misiorowski ran into a little bit of trouble, allowing singles to Jonathan Aranda and Chandler Simpson. The Rays had two on and one out with a big time threat in Junior Caminero at the plate. Caminero ripped a line drive, but it was right at third baseman David Hamilton, who easily caught it and doubled off Aranda at second base.

The crowd erupted on that play and they were able to erupt again in the bottom half of the first. Multiple times.

Jackson Chourio swung at the first pitch he saw from Rays starter Nick Martinez and lined a single to right field. The captain, Christian Yelich, then crushed an 0-2 cutter on the inside corner into the gap in right-center.

Jonny DeLuca came oh-so-close to running that down and making an incredible catch, but he just couldn’t hold on to it. It goes as a triple for Yelich and it gave the Brewers a 1-0 lead.

“It got in on me a little bit, I could kinda tell I backspun it, so it’s not really like hooking or it’s not really diving, so you know it’s gonna kind of hang up there a little bit. Was just hoping that it was fan enough away from him to get down and fortunately it did.” Yelich said.

With Yelich on third, the Rays infield was drawn in for William Contreras. And he took advantage.

Very quickly, the Brewers established a lead for Misiorowski and got to Martinez before he was able to settle into the game.

After that, though, the Brewers offense struggled for a few innings, going three-up and three-down in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th innings.

Meanwhile, the Rays were able to get some traffic against Misiorowski in the 4th. A leadoff walk to Aranda was followed by a scorching double to center just off the outstretched glove off Garrett Mitchell. The ball left the bat at 112.7 MPH. That led to 2nd and 3rd for the Rays and Liam Hicks cashed a run in with a groundout to first on a slow roller.

The Rays had some more traffic in the 5th and 6th innings. They were 11-for-11 on stolen bases in the first two rounds of the postseason. But they hadn’t yet faced William Contreras. Contreras gunned down Victor Mesa Jr at 3rd base in the 5th and then completed a strike-em-out-throw-em-out double play to end the 6th inning.

Contreras literally could not have walked the baseball down there and handed it to Hamilton in a more perfect spot than he did on that throw in the 5th.

It was a 2-1 ballgame after that, typical of the Brewers this postseason. A close, intense matchup, battling out long at-bats and grinding your way through.

The Brewers finally broke through again in the 7th inning. Cooper Pratt got things started with a leadoff walk. Sal Frelick then flew out and David Hamilton grounded out, but the grounder allowed Pratt to reach second base. That would prove important for the two out rally as the Brewers had their most clutch hitter due up in Jackson Chourio.

Chourio has said he was born for those moments. Once again, he proved that he was.

Swinging at the first pitch, Chourio delivered a single past a diving Jonathan Aranda that brought home Pratt and made it a 3-1 Brewers lead.

“The way I’ve always looked at it is it’s important to start with a good foot ahead. So if I have the opportunity to do that, I’m going to take advantage.” Chourio said.

“He’s special. He’s got special ability to compete at the big time. He’s poised. The last AB is the last AB. He’s ready every time. The kid is continuing to do this (indicating up), and it’s scary.” Pat Murphy said.

The Brewers bullpen was once again spectacular. Abner Uribe went 1.1 scoreless IP. He turned it over to Aaron Ashby, who again, delivered a perfect outing, retiring each of the five batters he faced and striking out three of them. Then it was on to Trevor Megill to close things out in the 9th.

Megill retired Yandy Diaz on a grounder to third. Jonathan Aranda reached base for the fourth time with a single to left. Then Chandler Simpson lined a single to center and Junior Caminero drew a walk. That loaded the bases for Liam Hicks.

Hicks hit a grounder to Turang’s left, forcing a tough turn and fire to second base to attempt the double play. Initially, it was a double play, the game was over, the fireworks went off, the TV postgame show set was being wheeled onto the field, fire up Glory Days, it’s a big Brewers win.

But hold on. Hold everything. The Rays challenge and upon review, Cooper Pratt’s foot left second base just a little bit early. That meant the Brewers had to lock back in, there was still one more out to get. A run had scored, so it was a 3-2 Brewers lead now. Tying run is on third, the go-ahead run is on second.

Megill, unphased, comes back to strike out Jonny DeLuca to end this game for good this time.

“Just freaking get after it. Gotta go for a strikeout there.” Megill said on his mentality after the overturn.

The Brewers got four impressive innings from their bullpen in support of Jacob Misiorowski. Misiorowski hasn’t had the strikeout stuff he had during the regular season, tallying just three punchouts in his five innings. But he still kept barrels off the ball, and he kept the lead for the Brewers and the bullpen to hold.

Yelich struck first, Contreras added on, and Chourio came through with what ended up being the winning run in front of a crowd of 43,250.

The Brewers have taken a 1-0 series lead over the Rays. They are three wins away from immortality. Logan Henderson gets the start for Game 2 while the Rays will have Drew Rasmussen.

The Tampa Bay Rays had a World Series Game 1 win on the line multiple times. They just could not reel it in.

Tampa Bay dropped Game 1 of the World Series 3-2 to the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday night. A ninth-inning rally, kept alive by a replay review, ended with the tying run on third base when Jonny DeLuca struck out against Trevor Megill. Between a ball that popped out of a glove and two double plays that caught two runners stealing, the Rays had their hands on this one several times. The Brewers lead the series 1-0, and if the rest of the series is anything like this one, everybody is in for a ride.

The first near miss came three batters in. Jonathan Aranda and Chandler Simpson singled, but Junior Caminero lined a ball right at third baseman David Hamilton, who doubled Aranda off second.

The bottom half was where the first opportunity slipped free. After Jackson Chourio led off with a single against Nick Martinez, Christian Yelich drove one to deep center, where it bounced out of DeLuca’s glove. Instead of a long out, it was an RBI triple. William Contreras followed with a single that caromed off shortstop Taylor Walls into left, and Milwaukee led 2-0 before the Rays could settle in.

Martinez ultimately settled in. He struck out Brice Turang and Garrett Mitchell to end the first, stranded Sal Frelick at third in the second, and retired eight straight at one point. His final line: five innings, two runs, five hits, no walks and five strikeouts.

Jacob Misiorowski, the majors’ ERA leader at 1.80 during the regular season, threw triple-digit heat, topping out at 103.5 mph on the first pitch of the game. The Rays finally started making a dent on him in the fourth. Aranda walked, Caminero scorched a double to center, and Liam Hicks grounded out to bring Aranda home. DeLuca flew out, leaving Caminero at third, and it was 2-1.

Then the basepaths started taking bites out of the line.

Victor Mesa Jr. singled to open the fifth and moved to second, only to be thrown out by Contreras trying to steal third with two outs. Mesa got some payback in the bottom half, starting a relay that nailed Hamilton at third after a double to right.

In the sixth, Aranda singled off reliever Abner Uribe and was cut down stealing second on the same pitch Simpson struck out on. Normally that’s a hit-and-run you can count on like the sun rising but tonight it did not work according to plan. That made three Rays runners erased on the bases in six innings in what ultimately would be a one-run game.

Milwaukee needed only one extra-base hit. Steven Matz wiggled out of two two-out walks in the sixth but walked Cooper Pratt to lead off the seventh. Pratt reached second with two outs, and Kevin Kelly came on to face Chourio, who grounded a single into right. 3-1.

That run looked like a minor detail at the time. It wasn’t.

The Rays bullpen kept the door shut. In the eighth, Garrett Cleavinger and Cole Sulser stranded runners at the corners, with Caminero handling three plays at third, including a bunt he caught on a line. Aaron Ashby, meanwhile, set down all five Rays he saw for Milwaukee.

That set up the ninth, and the closest the Rays came to reeling it in. Díaz grounded out, but Aranda singled for his third hit and Simpson followed with another. Jorge Mateo ran for Aranda, the two pulled off a double steal, and Caminero walked to load the bases.

Suddenly, a game that felt just out of reach felt like a comeback was moving from possible to probable.

Hicks hit a hard grounder to Turang that was initially called a game-ending double play. Tampa Bay challenged the call at second, and it was overturned because Pratt’s foot was off the base, and suddenly the game was still breathing. Mateo scored as a result; Simpson was on third with the tying run, and Caminero was at second with the go-ahead run. Hicks had driven in both Rays runs without a hit. If the Rays pulled off the win, it would have been one of the most impactful replay reviews in history.

DeLuca, though, struck out swinging, and the tension in the game and proverbial fishing line went slack.

The Brewers are now 5-0 at home this postseason. The Rays get another chance in Game 2 on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET, with Drew Rasmussen starting opposite Logan Henderson.

The Dodgers didn’t have a number of relievers in the postseason.

The back-to-back World Series champions were swept in the National League Championship Series by Brewers, missing key bullpen staples such as Blake Treinen, Brusdar Graterol, Ben Casparius, Jack Dreyer, and Will Klein.

Klein, who emerged as a World Series hero for the Dodgers in 2025, underwent successful offseason surgery and is expected to be ready for spring training. The reliever shared the news on his Instagram Stories.

Klein sported a 3.67 ERA with 49 strikeouts across 41.2 innings pitched in 2026. The right-hander landed on the injured list in August with right elbow discomfort and missed the remainder of the season because of the injury.

In 2025, Klein became an unlikely hero for the Dodgers in World Series Game 3, the infamous 18-inning thrilled that lasted more than six hours. Klein tossed four scoreless innings, entering in the 15th frame and finishing the game as the Dodgers’ final reliever in the bullpen.

His shutout performance helped the Dodgers defeat the Blue Jays 6-5 in a wild Game 3.

The Dodgers acquired Klein in a minor league trade with the Mariners last June. The reliever is set to be ready for the 2027 season as the Dodgers look to bounce back after an early postseason exit this year.

MILWAUKEE — Trevor Megill struck out Jonny DeLuca with runners on second and third to wiggle out of a ninth-inning jam as the Milwaukee Brewers escaped with a 3-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday night.

DeLuca’s strikeout came after Tampa Bay’s Liam Hicks had grounded into an apparent game-ending double play that was overturned after a video review. Replays determined that Brewers shortstop Cooper Pratt’s right foot was slightly off the bag when he reached to catch a high throw from second baseman Brice Turang.

“You have a big range of emotions,” Milwaukee captain Christian Yelich said. “It’s a big credit to Trev for locking back in right there and making some huge pitches after you have that emotional dump and then have to get back on it.”

Jacob Misiorowski allowed one run and four hits over five innings to earn the victory.

“Not perfect, but good enough to get a win,” he said.

Yelich hit an RBI triple to spark a two-run rally in the first that put the Brewers ahead for good and delighted a sellout crowd reveling in Milwaukee’s first World Series game since 1982. Jackson Chourio and William Contreras each had two hits, including an RBI single. Contreras also threw out two runners trying to steal.

This marks the first World Series featuring two teams seeking their first championship since 1980, when the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Kansas City Royals in six games. The only other major league clubs without a World Series title are the Colorado Rockies, San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners.

The Game 1 winner has gone on to win the World Series 62.8% of the time.

Tampa Bay trailed 3-1 and hadn’t put a runner on since the sixth inning until it mounted its comeback attempt in the ninth.

Jonathan Aranda and Chandler Simpson hit consecutive one-out singles off Megill. A double steal involving pinch-runner Jorge Mateo and Simpson put the potential tying run in scoring position with Rays slugger Junior Caminero at the plate. Caminero walked on a 3-2 pitch in the dirt to load the bases.

Hicks hit a grounder to the right side, and Turang ranged well to his left to field the ball before throwing to Pratt to start what initially was ruled a game-ending double play.

Fireworks went off, players poured onto the field and Milwaukee fans roared — before the crowd hushed as it watched the play again on the videoboard.

A replay review determined Pratt’s right foot came off the bag as he caught Turang’s throw. Hicks was still out at first, but the Rays now had runners at second and third with the score 3-2.

“I thought Coop had him, and obviously I was wrong,” Misiorowski said.

Megill finally closed the deal as DeLuca struck out swinging.

“You just have to lock it back in,” Yelich said. “It’s the World Series — you have to do what you have to do to make things happen.”

By sweeping the two-time defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series, the Brewers had time to set up their rotation the way they wanted by handing the Game 1 start to Misiorowski, the hard-throwing NL Cy Young Award favorite.

Misiorowski opened the game by throwing the fastest pitch ever delivered in a World Series, a 103.5 mph ball to Yandy Díaz. The right-hander finished with a season-low three strikeouts.

“Look, he’s so talented. He’s such a special pitcher. I felt like for him to be out of the game at five innings, there’s a small win in that,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “The problem is when you knock him out of the game, you’ve got just an elite bullpen that can match up and come in the ballgame like they did and kept us quiet there.”

While Milwaukee started with its ace, Tampa Bay countered with Nick Martinez to give two-time All-Star pitchers Drew Rasmussen and Freddy Peralta an extra day of rest. Martinez struck out five and allowed two runs over five innings, but a slow start proved costly.

Chourio lined a single to right field on Martinez’s first pitch, and Yelich drove him home with a one-out triple to center. DeLuca covered 85 feet to track down Yelich’s drive but just missed making a diving catch as the ball glanced off his glove.

“I thought Jonny covered a lot of ground right there to even make that play close,” Cash said. “I don’t think we did too many things wrong. They did some things right. Squared some balls up.”

Yelich was batting third in the lineup for the first time since Aug. 3. The three-time All-Star and 2018 NL MVP posted the lowest on-base percentage (.315) and OPS (.692) of his career, but he has stepped up his since being named the first team captain in franchise history the final week of the regular season.

He was the seventh player to triple in his first World Series plate appearance, and the first since Kansas City’s Lynn Jones in 1985, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Contreras knocked home Yelich with a line-drive single to left that was deflected by shortstop Taylor Walls with the infield playing in.

Tampa Bay got a run back in the fourth.

Aranda drew a leadoff walk and advanced to third when Caminero doubled on a one-out liner with a 112.7 mph exit velocity that sailed over center fielder Garrett Mitchell and off his outstretched glove. Aranda came home on Hicks’ groundout to the right side.

Milwaukee extended the lead to 3-1 in the seventh. Pratt drew a leadoff walk from Steven Matz and scored from second when Chourio greeted Kevin Kelly with a two-out single.

That insurance run proved critical.

“The guys settled in right away and did a great job,” Yelich said. “We still have a ways to go, but it’s nice to get that first one.”

MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee Brewers fans patiently waited 44 years for this night, and three hours later, with hoarse throats and weary legs, oh, was it ever worth it.

The Brewers, in front of 43,250 screaming fans who stood most of the game Friday at American Family Field, delivered a powerful victory in Game 1 of the World Series, 3-2, over the Tampa Bay Rays.

It was hardly easy, with the Rays refusing to fade into the night, but the Rays were their own worst enemy, three times running into outs on the bases, and having two balls glance off their gloves in the field.

“This team was the best team in the National League," Rays first baseman Jonathan Aranda said before Game 1, “best team in baseball for a reason. … They do almost everything well."

WORLD SERIES: Brewers manager with Springsteen tattoo got call from The Boss

The Brewers, led by ace Jacob Misiorowski, dominated for five innings, and then sat back and watched the Brewers’ bullpen completely suffocate the Rays’ offense. The Brewers’ bullpen pitched four shutout innings, giving up just two singles, while Aaron Ashby continued his brilliance, pitching 1 ⅔ shutout innings. He has pitched 14 shutout innings this postseason, giving up just four hits.

The Brewers had just two extra-base hits without a homer, but scrapped and clawed their way to three runs with the top four hitters in the lineup_Jackson Chourio, Jake Bauers, Christian Yelich and William Contreras_producing six of their eight hits. They did most of their damage in the first inning with Chourio leading off with a single, Yelich hitting a one-out triple to center field field that glanced off Jonny DeLuca’s glove with Contreras following with a sharp single off shortstop Taylor Walls with a drawn-in infield.

But the real heroes, the Brewers say, are their fans.

MILWAUKEE – William Contreras is already having a historic run through this postseason. The Tampa Bay Rays certainly didn’t need to play into his hands in Game 1 of the World Series.

Yet over the course of just a few innings, Contreras, the Milwaukee Brewers’ dynamic catcher, showed just how much he can control a single baseball game – on both sides of the ball.

It is not often that one man smokes his team’s hardest-hit ball of the night for a run-scoring hit that stood up as the winning run, then snuffs out two of the opposition’s scoring chances by cutting down baserunners foolhardy enough to run on him.

Contreras, though, is truly built different.

The three-time All-Star finally has a stage befitting his massive skills and nickname to match – Wild Bill – for the baseball world to appreciate. And Friday, Oct. 23, as Milwaukee was ready to burst over its first World Series appearance in 44 years, Contreras gave them what they asked for as he commanded the Brewers’ 3-2 victory before 43,250 giddy onlookers at American Family Field.

Milwaukee takes a 1-0 lead into Saturday’s Game 2, thanks to a victory in a game that was taut yet also featured several unforced errors by the Rays.

Then again, Contreras forced the issue on numerous occasions.

Major League Baseball is monitoring the investigation involving Dodgers owner Mark Walter.

Walter caught the attention of federal authorities following a whistleblower complaint regarding alleged misrepresented loans made between the Guggenheim founder’s companies. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan and the Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating the complaint and MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred revealed the league’s interest in the situation.

“As always when we have an investigation, external law enforcement, whatever, we monitor that and that’s where we are right now,” Manfred told reporters.

Walter has already sold several parts of his sports empire in light of the investigation. The business mogul sold the Lakers at a record $12.5 billion valuation as well as his stakes in Chelsea FC.

The latest report states Walter is also looking to sell his controlling interest in the Sparks at a record valuation.

The investigation has propelled several questions regarding Walter’s sports portfolio, which has shrinked in recent months. Walter’s remaining holdings include the Dodgers, the Cadillac F1 team and the Professional Women’s Hockey League.

This summer, Dodgers president Stan Kasten explicitly said the MLB team was not being sold.

“I wanted to make sure everyone understood one thing very clearly: The Dodgers are not being sold,” Kasten told reporters.

“They’re not gonna be sold. They’re not for sale. There’s no process that has been started to sell it, period,” Kasten continued. “We are planning only to win. That is what we are always doing. And we are still continuing to do that.”

The results of the federal probe, however, could have implications for the back-to-back World Series champions.

It was an evening for pomp and pageantry, for celebrating a World Series between two of the five major league teams never to win one. But, before the first pitch of the first game, the commissioner of baseball and the head of the players’ union held separate media gatherings that only served to reinforce the notion that a lockout in December is a virtual certainty and Opening Day next March is in serious jeopardy.

Of all the major North American sports, baseball is the only one without a salary cap. The players and their union vow to keep it that way, and union chief Bruce Meyer said every proposal the owners make on every issue is contingent upon a salary cap. How, someone asked commissioner Rob Manfred, can the owners strike a deal if the union is entrenched against a cap?

“Re-thinking where you are is a really important part of trying to make a deal,” Manfred said. “It’s actually a skill in collective bargaining. It’s easy to say, ‘I’m here and I’m never moving.’ That’s not a particularly skilled approach to the process.”

Read more:Shaikin: Why Dodgers fans need to be cheering for the Brewers in this World Series

That is perilously close to telling the other guy at the negotiating table how to negotiate. It’s also something you might say when you’re feeling pretty darn good that you’re going to win the negotiation.

“We have an unprecedented level of unanimity among ownership that it is something that we need to do,” Manfred said.

He wouldn’t say otherwise at this point, of course. The owners were unified in 1994, when they last demanded a salary cap. They didn’t win, and fans lost the final two months of the 1994 season and the first month of the 1995 season.

When the NHL got its salary cap, owners shut down the league for a full year. Would MLB owners forgo a year — or at least several months — of ticket sales and media revenue to get their cap? Would MLB players forgo a year — or at least several months — of their salaries to stave off a cap?

We won’t know the answer to either question until the spring, and until then a new collective bargaining agreement would require one side or the other to abandon its position.

That makes this year’s World Series something of a Rorschach test: Is a Brewers-Rays series proof that the system actually works just fine the way it is?

To Manfred, the answer is no. A series featuring two of baseball’s smaller markets is an anomaly when history shows a correlation between payroll and success, not only in the regular season but in advancing through the playoffs.

“It’s not that no small market can win,” Manfred said. “It’s just that it’s pretty rare.”

To Meyer, the answer is yes.

“It has nothing to do with what the Dodgers are doing,” Meyer said. “There is no reason whatsoever that the Pirates can’t do what the Brewers have done, or what the Rays have done.”

The Pirates, Meyer said, do not spend all the money they are allotted to sign draft picks. The Brewers, playing in baseball’s smallest market, might not routinely hand out free-agent riches, but owner Mark Attanasio said his team ranks “right in the middle” of the 30 teams in spending on baseball operations.

Attanasio publicly stumped for a salary cap here Friday, saying it would “help us compete but more importantly all of the other teams with lower payrolls too.” He said Brewers fans already fear it might take another 44 years to return to the World Series.

Read more:Shaikin: As a kid, this World Series starter rooted for the Astros. Then he learned they cheated.

Said Meyer: “That doesn’t seem like a great way, with all due respect, to try and generate excitement among your fans.”

Meyer said this year’s series “undermines their argument” for what he called “the nuclear bomb of a salary cap.” He said the owners are uninterested in the union’s proposals for addressing competitive balance, including increased revenue sharing among owners and a tax against teams that fail to win consistently, and he alleged the league’s argument is “a charade” for what the owners really want: “to suppress salaries and gut player rights.”

The takeaway: Don’t book non-refundable airline tickets and hotel rooms for spring training.

On other topics:

— As The Times has reported, MLB is keeping an eye on federal investigations into Dodgers owner Mark Walter and his insurance empire, which is under scrutiny for allegedly violating laws designed to protect investors. Walter also is a defendant in multiple civil lawsuits filed by investors alleging fraud and breach of contract.

“As always when we have an investigation — external, law enforcement, whatever — we monitor that,” Manfred said. “That’s where we are right now. We’re just watching what’s going on right now.”

Over the past two months, amid efforts to find what could be more than $20 billion to recapitalize insurance funds, Walter has sold his controlling interest in the Lakers and a minority share of Chelsea, the English Premier League club. On Friday, Bloomberg reported he is seeking to sell the Sparks. He has no plan to sell the Dodgers, team president Stan Kasten has said.

— Meyer said the MLBPA continues negotiations with LA28 over how major league players would be accommodated in the 2028 Olympics. “As of now, we’re not getting satisfaction on those things,” Meyer said.

Both the league and the union say they want to participate in the Games, but Manfred said MLB would normally start preparing its 2028 schedule early in 2027. The league has agreed to an extended All-Star break to accommodate the Olympics, but MLB also could tire of waiting for the union to agree with LA28, which badly wants MLB players to participate.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

It didn’t take long for Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski to break a record in his first World Series appearance.

Misiorowski set the record for the fastest World Series pitch in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008) on his very first ball thrown during Milwaukee’s 3-2 Game 1 win of the Fall Classic on Friday — a 103.5 mph heater to Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz.

The pitch, which Diaz took for a ball above the strike zone, was listed as 103.4 mph on the scoreboards at American Family Field, but MLB’s Statcast system clocked it at 103.5 mph.

Misiorowski’s record-setting pitch beat out lefty flamethrower Aroldis Chapman’s 103.2 mph fastball for the Cubs during Game 2 of the 2016 World Series, which ultimately resulted in a groundout by Cleveland outfielder Coco Crisp.

The right-hander was fastball-heavy in the first inning, starting the game with 10 in a row and throwing it on 11 of 13 pitches in the frame, averaging a scorching 101.9 mph.

Misiorowski ended Friday’s game with three strikeouts and gave up one earned run through five innings.

Misiorowski has made waves across the MLB in his first full season for his incredibly high velocity for a starting pitcher, throwing 1,115 pitches over 100 mph in the regular season this year.

The high velocity has translated into success for Misiorowski, as the righty led the league in ERA (1.80) and strikeouts (252) with a 16-5 record in 30 starts.

He hasn’t let off the gas much in the postseason either, pitching to a 3.24 ERA with 11 strikeouts in 8 ⅓ innings in two starts headed into Friday’s game.

Following his start earlier this month during Game 1 of the NLCS against the Dodgers, Misiorowski opened up on the pressure of starting a postseason game compared to coming out of the bullpen, which he did in the 2025 postseason.

“I think it’s different just the fact that I’m starting, that nerve of actually having the whole game and it being behind me, and it’s kind of different,” he said during an appearance on FOX Sports after the game. “Coming out of the bullpen, you’re like, you get thrown in a situation, it’s unknown. So this one’s a little different.

“Nerves are a little higher with the start, so nothing crazy, but that’s about it.”