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The Milwaukee Brewers took early punches from the Tampa Bay Rays at home in Game 2 of the World Series back on Saturday evening. Then, they fired right back – all the way to a 5-4 come from behind victory that saw them surge to a 2-0 lead in this Best of 7 affair.
Tampa’s in a bind. Lucky for them, though, they’re finally back at home in the friendly, remodeled confines of Tropicana Field.
Milwaukee will send lefty Robert Gasser to the mound to start, while the home squad will turn to former Brewer stud Freddy Peralta for the game’s first pitch – and, hopefully, another hundred or so after that. Peralta, who went 70-42 with a 3.59 ERA across 931.0 IP with the Brewers prior to being dealt to the New York Mets before the 2026 season – reinvented himself yet again after Tampa acquired him prior to the 2026 trade deadline, and now he’ll get to face his former club in what could be his final start of any sort prior to hitting free agency for the first time.
First pitch will be tossed shortly after 8:00 PM ET per usual, with FOX on the broadcast.
Here’s how both clubs will line up to begin:
Brewers explode vs. Rays to seize 3-0 lead in World Series originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
When it’s your year, the signs will be evident.
The Milwaukee Brewers exploded to a 3-0 World Series lead over the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday, using a powerful fifth inning en route to a 10-1 result.
Milwaukee faced former pitcher Freddy Peralta and got the better of him beginning in the third inning. Christian Yelich drove in Jackson Chourio before William Contreras hit a single to bring home Jake Bauers.
Milwaukee started with Robert Gasser. The 27-year-old left-hander turned in an excellent performance, lasting six innings and allowing just one hit and one walk with three strikeouts. The Brewers couldn’t have asked for much better use of a non-star.
With Gasser managing the Rays, Milwaukee completely broke open the game in the fifth inning.
Despite having two outs, Milwaukee pulled off the improbable and scored eight runs. Seven consecutive batters registered a hit, all leading to runs. It’s the first time in MLB postseason history that has happened.
It started with Brice Turang sneaking one in to bring home Chourio and Yelich. Peralta had just exited and Tampa Bay turned to top lefty Cam Booser to get out of the jam, but it turned into a nightmare inning regardless.
Chourio eventually returned for another at-bat and hit a deep double to bring David Hamilton home, rounding out the scoring in the lengthy inning.
Milwaukee cooled off from there but made sure to limit Tampa Bay in the process. Eventually, the Brewers brought in Brandon Woodruff to close out the action in the ninth.
The former two-time All-Star hadn’t pitched since July, but returned to the venue where he made his MLB debut to shed some rust.
He allowed two hits, including a double to Yandy Diaz on a full count that brought in Cedric Mullins for Tampa Bay’s lone score. Woodruff then grounded out Jonathan Aranda to seal it.
Milwaukee ended the game with 16 hits to Tampa Bay’s three, with two of those three coming in the ninth.
Chourio led Milwaukee by going 4-for-5 at the plate to improve his bid for World Series MVP. Turang, Yelich and William Contreras all had multiple hits for the Brewers.
Game 4 in Tampa Bay is set for 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Tuesday. If the Rays’ offense cannot wake up, Milwaukee could secure its first ever World Series via a sweep.
Facing a 2-0 deficit in the World Series, the Tampa Bay Rays shook up their lineup for Game 3 at Tropicana Field, benching All-Star first baseman Jonathan Aranda and penciling catcher Nick Fortes into the lineup instead of Liam Hicks against Milwaukee Brewers left-hander Robert Gasser.
Aranda has started all 11 postseason games this year and recorded four hits in Games 1 and 2 of the World Series. He committed a pair of misplays in the field in Game 2, allowing a grounder to go between his legs that enabled a run to score and failing to reel in a pop fly that was dropping near the screen in foul ground.
He was also doubled off second base on Junior Caminero's line drive to third base to end the first inning of Game 1. Aranda is generally considered among the Rays' "big three" bats that hit near the top of the lineup, along with slugging leadoff batter Yandy Díaz and Caminero.
Hicks started all but one of the Rays' playoff games, coming off the bench in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series against Cleveland, when ace Drew Rasmussen started. Hicks hit a two-run homer in Game 2 to cap the Rays' four-run first inning.
But he got hit on the right elbow by a DL Hall pitch leading off the sixth inning. With dominant lefty reliever Aaron Ashby on the mound in the eighth, manager Kevin Cash pinch-hit Ryan Vilade in his place; Vilade struck out, but is starting Game 2 at first over Aranda.
The Brewers stole four of their five bases in the game with Fortes behind the plate after Hicks was removed, although all the steals came with reliever Kevin Kelly on the mound.
Fortes flew to Jupiter, Florida, for the birth of his first child on Sunday before crossing the state from Palm Beach County to Pinellas County for Game 3.
While Aranda and Hicks are both left-handed hitters and the Brewers are starting lefty Robert Gasser, Aranda started all four playoff games in the Rays' previous matchups against lefties, including the Yankees' Max Fried, a pair of starts from Guardians rookie Parker Messick and another against Cleveland lefty Foster Griffin. Hicks started three of those games.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rays shake up lineup in World Series Game 3, benching Jonathan Aranda, Liam Hicks
It’s time for the third game of what so far has been a strong World Series between the Rays and the Brewers. And tonight, the crown jewell of the baseball world heads to… uh, the Trop.
As a child of the 90s, I am somewhat nostalgic for gross old domes. The first World Series I ever remember was won in the SkyDome, after all. But now that a 30-year ballpark building boon has transformed the aesthetics of big league baseball forever, it’s hard to stomach games played on plastic grass under a tarp. At least it’ll be loud maybe?
Anyway, while I’m rooting for the Brewers to win the whole thing, I care first and foremost about seeing a long series. Six games minimum, seven preferred, obviously. So let’s go Rays, who will be taking the field behind Freddy Peralta.
Coverage starts at 8, catch it on FOX.
We have Game 3 of the World Series tonight. The Rays, down 2-0, are at home and will try to get back in the series against the Brewers.
The University of Houston’s own Robert Gasser pitches for the Brewers, while the Dominican Republic’s own Freddy Peralta goes for the Rays.
It is a 7 p.m. Central start on Fox.
Talk about it here.
Here we go. After yesterday’s travel day the two teams in this year’s World Series have arrived in Tampa Bay to continue their series. The Brewers took both of their home games back in Milwaukee and now find themselves in control of the series and just two wins away from their first championship. The Rays, who are also fighting to hoist the Commissioner’s Trophy for the first time, are back at home and have their backs up against the wall. No team has ever come back from a 0-3 deficit in the World Series so the Rays are going to come out desperate to take an early lead.
Tampa Bay has the big trade deadline acquisition Freddy Peralta (5-2, 3.25 ERA*) taking the ball tonight. The right-hander has looked like a different pitcher since joining the Rays and he’s kept that up in the postseason. In four games (three starts) he’s allowed just two earned runs, rewarding the Rays for their mid-season acquisition. Tonight will be the biggest start of his life. Can he continue pitching like an ace for a Tampa Bay squad that can not afford to lose tonight? A lot will depend on if he’s able to hold down the Milwaukee offense.
Numbers with the Rays, excluding his first half with the Mets*
Here’s how the Rays stack up for this must-win Game 3:
While the Rays have a veteran of the sport taking the ball tonight, Milwaukee meanwhile has a rookie scheduled for the start tonight. Left-hander Robert Gasser (5-5, 3.87 ERA) will be making his third postseason start this evening. The rookie has a chance to put his squad just one more win away from winning it all and he’s been pitching well in October, including last year. In two starts this postseason he’s allowed just one earned run. Manager Pat Murphy may pull him earlier than the regular season though if Milwaukee has a lead in the middle of the game. If Gasser can keep Tampa Bay off the board for a few innings and get the ball to the bullpen they’ll be in excellent position to go up 3-0 in this year’s Fall Classic.
And here is the Brew Crew’s starting lineup:
Does the series more or less end tonight with a Brewers’ win? Or can the Rays get back into the World Series with a win? Who do you got? Should be exciting either way!
This World Series is proving to be very fun to watch.
With a pair of one-run victories for the Brewers in Games 1 and 2 in Milwaukee, it’s proving to come down to the wire each game — and even a highly contested swing call for the final out of Game 2. The Rays are hoping for a different outcome tonight as they will play their first game of the World Series at Tropicana Field in Tampa Bay.
Game 3 features an intriguing matchup of former Brewer RHP Freddy Peralta (2-0, 1.08 ERA) against Milwaukee lefty Robert Gasser (0-0, 1.00 ERA). Peralta spent seven years in Milwaukee, including two NL All-Star seasons in 2021 and 2025.
Then the trades came prior to the 2026 season. On Jan. 21, the Brewers traded Peralta and RHP Tobias Myers to the New York Mets for RHP Brandon Sproat and SS Jett Williams. Peralta went 5-9 with a 4.99 ERA in 22 starts for the Mets before New York traded him to Tampa Bay for RHP Gary Gill Hill, outfielder Aidan Smith and shortstop Émilien Pitre just before the trade deadline on Aug. 2.
As a Ray, Peralta posted a 3.25 ERA in 10 starts, going 5-2 to finish out the regular season. In four postseason appearances, including three starts and totaling 16.2 innings, the 30-year-old has recorded 12 strikeouts and a 1.14 WHIP.
Gasser, 27, is in his third season in Milwaukee and his first as a major part of the rotation. In the regular season, he put up a 3.87 ERA and a 5-5 record in 20 starts and one relief appearance. In the playoffs, Gasser has thrown nine innings over two starts with six strikeouts and a 0.89 ERA.
Will Peralta show the Brewers they made a mistake in trading him or will Milwaukee move one win closer to its first World Series title?
Pitching Matchup: RHP Freddy Peralta (2-0, 1.08 postseason ERA) vs. LHP Robert Gasser (0-0, 1.00 postseason ERA)
SB Nation sites:DRaysBay | Brew Crew Ball
Radio: ESPN Radio
TV: FOX
Lineups:
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Jackson Chourio – LF
Jake Bauers – 1B
Christian Yelich – DH
William Contreras – C
Brice Turang – 2B
Garrett Mitchell – CF
Cooper Pratt – SS
Sal Frelick – RF
David Hamilton – 3B
SP: Robert Gasser – LHP
Yandy Diaz – DH
Ryan Vilade – 1B
Chandler Simpson – LF
Junior Caminero – 3B
Ben Williamson – 2B
Jonny DeLuca – CF
Victor Mesa – RF
Nick Fortes – C
Taylor Walls – SS
SP: Freddy Peralta – RHP
Time: 8:00 PM EDT
TV: FOX / FOX ONE, Fox Deportes
Radio: ESPN Radio
The Brewers are up two games to none after overcoming a first-inning 4-0 deficit in Game 2.
But you know, the Rays had the tying run on base in the ninth inning in both Game 1 and Game 2. Freddy Peralta has been nails for them. They’re playing at home, where they went 55-26 during the regular season and are 4-1 in the Postseason. Of Milwaukee’s nine wins so far this Postseason, five have been by one run.
This series is far from over, in my opinion.
TV: Fox-TV, Fox One (streaming). Announcers: Joe Davis, John Smoltz, Ken Rosenthal and Tom Verducci.
Robert Gasser, LHP vs. Freddy Peralta, RHP
A straightforward and fulfilling series of blog posts might involve looking at the top 5 moments from a given season, but this is McCovey Chronicles and I’m me, so, let’s look at the top 5 stories from this dreadful series. Whereas a moment encapsulates a series of events — or a single event! — and its commensurate emotion(s), a story is a range of events and a host of emotions that creates a narrative. The San Francisco Giants wanted to tell a certain story in 2026 but instead let’s look at the one they actually told.
We’ll start with the aspect of the roster that heralded the 2026 team’s downfall. That area of the roster that was the “key offseason target” last year netted a group that included Tyler Mahler and Adrian Houser for the rotation and, um, some guys for the bullpen: Sam Hentges, Jason Foley, Reiver Sanmartin, Caleb Kilian, Rowan Wick, and Ryan Borucki. For some, this list might be uninspiring. For the Giants, it was basically a perfectly executed plan:
“We’re most definitely open to trying to add some arms that we think are going to help us on the starting side and the bullpen side.”
Now, why did the Giants think that this group would help? Well, add it all up, and Mahler and Houser were basically worth 4 WAR combined. Hentges and Foley were both ~1.5-WAR relievers at their peaks (2023) — adding those into the mix basically put a possible floor at where the pitching staff ended 2025 (+15.8 fWAR), and then it would be a matter of younger players taking a step forward.
That this group wound up amounted to just about 2 WAR total (3.5-WAR gap) is a good reason why the staff finished at just 9.8 fWAR in value after the season. The other, of course, is that a lot of players failed to develop or simply slid into disaster territory (Ryan Walker). Logan Webb missing time with injury and missing his projected WAR by maybe 1.5 is another factor, along with all those other injuries, but the point is: the Giants thought they had a good plan that just didn’t work out.
It’s not exactly arrogance, but it does smack of something personality-driven. It was pretty clear from the outside looking in that their offseason decisions signaled some sort of shrug or fingers crossed theme or simply being comfortable with the results of a Lotto scratcher, but it does seem like the Giants — led by Buster Posey, of course — seems to be constructing a front office pitching philosophy from first principles. Maybe it’s the hubris of thinking that all the collective knowledge from the Moneyball era is bunk or maybe it’s the result of really coming to underst and that “baseball is hard,” but if a dumb, worthless pile of loser blogger nonsense like me could see that Tyler Mahle, Adrian Houser, and some TJ recovery guys weren’t going to bolster a pitching staff and that relying on development success was a risky proposition in the face of a decade of relative non-success and that expecting things to improve significantly under the direction of a neophyte major league coaching staff was a bad idea, then I can only draw the conclusion that they didn’t see something I didn’t, they thought something different about their own decision-making.
Could I have been wrong, too? Well, sure, I often am; but, all I was doing was looking at numbers and some basic context and not imagining that the floor was something different from what was plainly obvious. And, I think Buster Posey’s comments about this offseason suggest that I am more right for viewing the situation this way all along than I was wrong. Andrew Baggarly wrote up the team’s approach to the offseason from the pitching-side of the equation (a serendipitous discovery this morning as I was working on this piece) and put this quote from Posey in his article for The Athletic:
“So with the way the game’s changed, to me, we have to make an effort to increase stuff in our system and get it to the big-league level.
Again, this feels like constructing a pitching staff from first principles.
Perhaps this is just a necessary evil or built-in aspect of a first-time org leader, but, yeah. Pitchers have been throwing harder for a while now. Logan Webb has stood out as an exception to that, which is why he’s always been remarkable. But, yeah, Carlos Rodon, Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto — why else would the Giants be extremely interested in them? Hard-throwing strikeout guys.
Baggarly’s piece does verify something that was easy to suspect while watching the team pitch this season: confusion and discoordination when it came to messaging and emphasis.
It took weeks of discussions in October to identify deeper issues that included a muddled hierarchy among the pitching coaches under a manager, Vitello, who was navigating a 162-game season for the first time.
“When we sat back and analyzed the way the group operated this year, we all felt there needed to be a clearer chain of command,” Posey said. “That’s where we’re going to start: It’s going to flow through Meccage and we need these guys to work as a team. […] if we have to sit and meet as a group for 15 or 20 minutes each day to get everybody on the same page, and they can argue through everything there is to argue, that’s what we’re gonna do. That was not done daily last year.
So, the Giants had part of a plan. It’s hard not to imagine that this disorganization and limited imagination on the pitching side stayed in that group, and that’s why this was one of the key storylines of the season. Of course, the biggest incident of the season involved the pitching staff, too, so, between that and Posey’s comments in The Athletic piece and the simple matter of their dreadful on-field performance (eighth-worst team ERA and sixth-worst WAR total of the Oracle Park era).
The thing about “stuff” is that it’s expensive if you don’t develop it internally. The Giants’ 7.58 K/9 (the easiest marker of stuff) ranks 17th out of 27 seasons at Oracle Park, right between 2017 (7.65) and 2014 (7.52), right between the eras where you couldn’t have a bunch of groundballers (2017) and you could (2014). The 3.75 BB/9 is the third-worst of the Oracle Park era, after only 2008 (4.07) and 2000 (3.88). And their player development seemed to be focused on producing more Logan Webbs than strikeout guys before lucking into Jackson Flora, and so course-correcting seems like a really tall task, especially in a single offseason.
The Brewers took both games at home to start the World Series. They take that 2-0 lead to the Trop tonight as the Brewers and Rays face off for Game 3.
The Brewers look like they’ll start Robert Gasser, a fly ball pitcher who got 1.5 fWAR in 109.1 innings and 21 appearances (20 starts). This season was his first major work in MLB; he threw only 33.2 MLB innings across 2024 and 2025. He has given up only 1 run in 9 innings across 2 starts in the 2026 postseason.
The Rays will start former Brewer Freddy Peralta tonight. He has given up only 2 runs in 16.2 innings of postseason work, which included a brief appearance out of the bullpen against Cleveland.
The game starts at 7:00pm US Central time. You can watch on FOX/FOX ONE or listen on ESPN Radio.
Lineups:
If you have YoutubeTV, you’re probably split screening this one. Eagles on one side, World Series on the other.
Let’s talk about it.
The controversies and speculation are aplenty as the Milwaukee Brewers take a two-game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays into Game 3 of the World Series. For the third time this postseason, the Brewers take the road having won the first two games of the series, with a chance to put the most pressure possible on their opponent.
Since 2018, when the rebuild was complete, the World Series was on everyone’s mind. During each run between then and now, only a few players stayed; one of those was Freddy Peralta. Most people had the belief that he was going to be the arm to start Game 1 of the World Series for the Brewers; instead, it’s Game 3 for the Rays.
While the former ace facing his former team is heartfelt and bittersweet, the Brewers have a chance to quiet Tropicana Field…or will it be loud, filled with Brewers faithful looking to witness their club win their first World Series? As ticket prices rose in Milwaukee, they fell in Tampa Bay. Wisconsinites have teamed together, as some reports have said that nearly 30% of the tickets sold for Games 3 & 4 were from The Good Land.
Tonight, the sweet-swinging Brewers will look to continue their postseason success as they enter riding a season-high seven-game winning streak. While the Rays tried to get sneaky with their rotation plans, it has yet to faze the Brewers offense as they have taken down Drew Rasmussen and Nick Martinez. Tonight, against their old friend, they’ll have their hands full. The first meeting between the two has already occurred, and it wasn’t a pleasant homecoming for Peralta, as he allowed seven runs on eight hits, two home runs, and a pair of walks on July 20 as a New York Met.
To further the confidence of the Brewers’ bats against Peralta, each player in the lineup has at least one hit in their career against him, with William Contreras leading the way batting .500 with a couple of RBIs, and Jackson Chourio batting .444 with an RBI and two stolen bases.
As has been the case in each of the last three games that the Brewers have been in, Robert Gasser is handed the ball in an attempt to provide some length and relief to the bullpen. Perhaps the biggest question mark entering the postseason has become the biggest surprise, as Gasser has allowed just one run through nine innings pitched. He’s facing a lineup that hasn’t seen a ton of him, nor had a lot of success, as five of the nine starters for the Rays haven’t recorded a hit.
The biggest storyline for the Rays lineup entering play tonight is that manager Kevin Cash has benched Jonathan Aranda for the first time this postseason, despite having reached base in five of his eight World Series plate appearances. Now, it’s expected that he’ll make an appearance in the lineup once Gasser leaves the mound, but the biggest thing that has gone right for the Rays offense this World Series is now gone. Replacing Aranda is Ryan Vilade, whom the Brewers have seen twice as he’s struck out once.
For the first time since 2021, the Brewers will play a postseason game on the East Coast, as first pitch is slated for 7 p.m. CT. You’ll be able to watch the game on FOX and listen to the game on WTMJ.
According to Charlotte Varnes of The Athletic, the Phillies are hiring former Boston Red Sox coach Peter Fatse as their hitting coach.
There was no news regarding what will happen with assistants Edwar Gonzalez and Rafael Pena but there will be a new top guy in Fatse.
Fatse started his coaching career as a hitting coordinator with the Minnesota Twins in 2019 and then went to Boston right after the season. He was eventually promoted to be the Red Sox hitting coach before the 2022 season and was in that role until a coaching staff clean out in the April of 2026 which started with Alex Cora.
From 2022-2025, the Red Sox ranked 14th in wRC+ although did not always have the best offensive players at his disposal. Tyler O’Neill put together the 2nd best season of his career under Fatse in 2023 with a .847 OPS, eventually earning a three-year deal with the Baltimore Orioles and has not been able to recapture the same form. Jarren Duran did his best hitting during that span and regressed hard in 2026. Ceddanne Rafaela has grown into a very capable offensive player.
There have also been players who did not meet expectations. Kristian Campbell has not panned out as a top prospect for the Sox. Marcello Mayer was another one who was eventually traded at the deadline for Erik Miller and a prospect. Whether the successes or failures of certain Red Sox hitters deserve to be on Peter Fatse is not clear and never will be but it’s worth pointing out both.
One other key aspect of this hiring that is impossible to ignore is that he is tied with Alex Cora. Cora rejected the Phillies’ offer in April and turned them down again earlier in October but his presence will loom large on the franchise until he takes another job. Especially since he hasn’t ruled out managing again in the future and the Phillies only gave Don Mattingly a two-year contract.
This may be all a coincidence but they just hired someone with a real connection to Alex Cora and who was part of the Red Sox staff cleaning in April. This storyline is just not going away.