No matter who wins the 2026 World Series, one team will be getting their first championship rings.

But whether the Tampa Bay Rays or Milwaukee Brewers win the Fall Classic, bling continued to be a part of baseball this season.

The Rays, who have a penchant for pizzazz, beat the Cleveland Guardians in the American League Championship Series to punch their ticket to the World Series.

On their journey to the championship matchup, Milwaukee swept the Los Angeles Dodgers, who dominated the fashion game last postseason, in the National League Championship Series.

Good morning, Camden Chatters.

It’s time for the World Series. And for the 43rd consecutive year, the Orioles will not be participating. They don’t want to be greedy, you know. Those World Series spots are pretty coveted, and the O’s prefer to hang back for a few decades and let everyone else have a chance. It’s pretty generous when you think about it.

While the O’s rest on their three-championship laurels, another team is about to win its first. Either the Milwaukee Brewers, who have been around since 1970 (plus one season as the Seattle Pilots in 1969), or the Tampa Bay Rays, who came into existence in 1998, will add a long-awaited World Series title to their trophy case. That’s pretty neat! Again, both teams owe a debt of gratitude to the Orioles for graciously stepping aside — by playing terrible baseball — to give them this opportunity.

Game 1 is tonight at 8 PM on Fox. Do you have a rooting interest, Camden Chatters? I’m pulling for the Brewers, mainly because their fans have had twice as long of a wait as the Rays. Think of all the long-suffering Orioles fans, many of whom have never seen their favorite team win it all, and then add another 13 years to that. Let these folks experience some joy after all this time.

Whichever team ends up winning, this should be an exciting, hard-fought series (if not exactly a TV ratings bonanza). The 103-win Brewers and the 98-win Rays were the best teams in their respective leagues this season, and both play the kind of high-quality, crisp baseball that is unfamiliar to O’s fans. Each team has its share of young, homegrown stars — Jacob Misiorowski, Jackson Chourio, and Brice Turang for the Brewers; Junior Caminero and Jonathan Aranda for the Rays, among others — proving that it is actually possible to develop talent that can succeed at the major league level. Who knew?

Both these teams are fundamentally sound on defense and grind out great at-bats on offense, showing excellent plate discipline and delivering big hits when they need them. Their rosters are well-constructed and cohesive, and of course, the vibes in the dugout are off the charts. And both teams are succeeding without being particularly big spenders; according to Spotrac, the Brewers’ payroll of $146.2 million was just the 19th highest in the majors, and the Rays’ $95.6 million was 28th out of the 30 major league clubs. (The Orioles’ $167.0 million mark ranked 17th.)

The Brewers and Rays have proven — not just this year, but for many years running — that a team can be a perennial contender on a smaller payroll by making shrewd trades and canny, low-cost free agent signings, and by building a prospect-rich organization and doing an excellent job of developing them. It’s a formula that Mike Elias has tried — and mostly failed — to replicate with the Orioles these past eight seasons.

Maybe it’ll finally happen in 2027. Otherwise we’ll be looking at a 44th straight Orioles-less World Series at this time next year.

Links

A scout’s take: An O’s top 30 pitching prospect that can fly under the radar – Steve Melewski

I’m finding it hard to get hyped about Nestor German, but I am intrigued by a potential future Orioles team that includes German, (Ike) Irish, and (Drew) French. Let’s build an entire roster out of European demonyms.

Questions and answers with Orioles pitching prospect Patrick Reilly – BaltimoreBaseball.com

Patrick Reilly seems to have a good head on his shoulders. And, also importantly, a now-healthy arm attached to that shoulder.

Wondering about possible and unlikely returnees to Orioles in 2027 – School of Roch

Send ’em all packing. Pete Alonso can stay.

Orioles birthdays and history

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Three players in Orioles history were born on this day: outfielder Dylan Carlson (28), right-hander Kyle Gibson (39), and the late infielder Vern Stephens (b. 1920, d. 1968).

Nothing has really happened on Oct. 23 in Orioles history, but in Orioles-adjacent history, the Dodgers hired Davey Johnson as their manager on this day in 1998. The former O’s player and skipper landed his first managerial job since he abruptly resigned from the Orioles in November 1997, on the same day he was named AL Manager of the Year. Johnson would last just two years as the Dodgers’ manager — the same length as his Orioles tenure — and failed to make the playoffs either season.

As few as four, as many as seven. That’s how many games we’ve got left in 2026.

On to the links.

Phillies News

The Inquirer publishes the results of a fan survey. ($)

Catcher Payton Henry, who signed a minor league contract with the Phils in July, has opted for free agency.

MLB news

Nick Martinez will get the start for Tampa Bay.

Jacob Misiorowski makes batters cry. But sometimes he cries too.

BLEPH.

Free of charge for the discerning reader.

Happy birthday to Dylan Carlson, and a mighty host of others.

Today in baseball history, in 1935 – Gabby Hartnett is selected by the Baseball Writers Association of America as the National League MVP, with Dizzy Dean the runner-up, and 1984 – Rick Sutcliffe*, who was 16-1 for the Cubs after arriving from Cleveland two days before the June 15trading deadline, is a unanimous choice as National League Cy Young Award winner, and other stories as well.

Today in baseball history:

• 1910 – Philadelphia Athletics pitcher Jack Coombs wins his third game of the World Series, beating the Chicago Cubs, 7-2, as the Athletics take the championship in five games. Eddie Collins helps Coombs with three hits, including two doubles.
• 1945 – Branch Rickey announces the signing of Jackie Robinson and John Wright by the Brooklyn Dodgers organization to a contract with Triple-A Montreal of the International League for 1946.
• 1974 – The Cubs trade sweet-swinging Billy Williams, a fixture at Wrigley Field for 16 years, to the Oakland Athletics for second baseman Manny Trillo and pitchers Darold Knowles and Bob Locker.
• 1993 – In one of the most dramatic endings in World Series history, Joe Carter hits a three-run, ninth-inning home run off Mitch Williams for an 8-6 win and Toronto’s second straight World Championship. Paul Molitor, who hits .500 (12 for 24), is named Series MVP while Lenny Dykstra of the Phillies, who hit .348 with four home runs, did everything except pitch. Following the 2010 season, a panel of experts at the MLB Network will vote this game the 14th greatest of the past fifty years.
• 1996 – At Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, the Braves jump to a 6-0 lead, but the Yankees mount the biggest comeback in their long World Series history with a three-run home run by Jim Leyritz that ties the game in the eighth inning. After Bernie Williams is intentionally walked with runners on first and second base in the 10th, Steve Avery walks Wade Boggs to bring in the deciding run.
• 2005 – The Chicago White Sox crash two of the more dramatic home runs in recent World Series history to score a 7-6 victory against the Houston Astros and take a two-games-to-none lead in the Series. Paul Konerko, who hit 40 homers in the regular season, and Scott Podsednik, who hit none, provide the fireworks. Konerko, the ALCSMVP, hits a grand slam in the seventh inning to give the White Sox a 6-4 lead. After the Astros tie the score in the ninth against Chicago closerBobby Jenks, Podsednik smacks a 2-1 pitch from Houston closer Brad Lidge into the bleachers in right-center field to trigger a boisterous celebration.
• 2013 – The Red Sox jump on the Cardinals early, scoring five runs in the first two innings, to cruise to an 8-1 win in Game 1 of the World Series. Mike Napoli hits a bases-clearing double in the 1st and the Sox add two more runs in the second in spite of Carlos Beltran robbing David Ortiz of a grand slam with a great catch. Jon Lester pitches 7.1 scoreless innings for the win while Adam Wainwright takes the loss.
• 2015 – In a nail-biting Game 6 of the ALCS, the Royals defeat the Blue Jays, 4-3, to return to the World Series. After a 45-minute rain delay, Lorenzo Cain scores all the way from first base on a single by Eric Hosmer in the eighth for the winning run. Jose Bautista drives in all three Toronto runs with a pair of homers, but the Jays are undone by their inability to cash in runners in scoring position throughout the game. For the Royals, Ben Zobrist and Mike Moustakas, with the assistance of a fan, hit solo homers to give the Royals an early 2-0 lead.
• 2019 – The Cubs hire former C David Ross, one of the heroes of their conquest of a World Series title in 2016, to succeed Joe Maddon as the team’s manager.
• 2022 – The Phillies punch their ticket to the World Series with a 4-3 win over the Padres in Game 5 of the 2022 NLCS. San Diego takes advantage of three wild pitches by Seranthony Dominguez to score twice and take a 3-2 lead in rainy conditions in the sventh, but in the bottom of the eighth, NLCS MVPBryce Harper hits a two-run homer off Robert Suarez to put the Phils ahead to stay.
• 2022 – The Astros complete a sweep of the Yankees in the ALCS to return to the World Series for the fourth time in six years. The key plays in the 6-5 win are a three-run homer by ALCS MVPJeremy Peña off Nestor Cortes in the third, and a botched double play grounder by 2B Gleyber Torres that leads to two Houston runs in the seventh.
• 2023 – The Rangers jump all over the Astros in Game 7 of the ALCS, scoring three runs in the 1st and chasing Cristian Javier before the end of the inning, then adding four runs against J.P. France in the fourth, on their way to an 11-4 win. Adolis García, the winner of the ALCS MVP Award, hits two more homers and drives in five runs, finishing with 15 RBIs for the series. Jordan Montgomery wins in relief of Max Scherzer and, as in the 2019 World Series, the visiting team won each of the seven games. The win sends the Rangers to the World Series for the first time since 2011, and ensures that once again there will not be a repeat champion, something that has not happened since 2000.

Cubs Birthdays:Dylan Carlson. Also notable: Jim Bunning HOF.

Today in history:

• 1091 – Tornado (possible T8/F4) strikes the heart of London, killing two and demolishing the wooden London Bridge.
• 1731 – Library of manuscript collector Robert Cotton is badly damaged in a fire in London, lost are one of only two surviving copies of King John‘s Magna Carta (1215) and Asser’s biography of King Alfred.
• 1814 – One of the first modern plastic surgeries in the West is performed by Joseph Carpue on a soldier’s nose in England using Indian techniques.
• 1911 – First aerial reconnaissance mission is flown by an Italian pilot over Turkish lines during the Italo-Turkish War.
• 1921 – Green Bay Packers play 1st APFA (forerunner to NFL) game; beat Minneapolis Marines, 7-6 at Hagemeister Park, Green Bay, WI.
• 1923 – A US patent (No. 1471465) is issued to American inventor Sebastian Hinton for a playground climbing structure popularly known as “monkey bars.”
• 1933 – John Dillinger and his gang rob Central National Bank, in Greencastle, Indiana; they steal $75, 000.
• 1964 – Future undisputed world heavyweight boxing champion Joe Frazier dominates German Hans Huber for an easy points win and the Olympic heavyweight gold medal in Tokyo.
• 2018 – The world’s oldest intact shipwreck, an ancient Greek vessel 2,400 years old, is found by archaeologists at the bottom of the Black Sea.

Today in music history:

• 1972 – “I’m Still in Love with You,” the fifth studio album by Al Green, is released (Billboard Album of the Year 1973).
• 1978 – Punk rock singer Sid Vicious attempts suicide while at Riker’s Detention Center in NYC.
• 1989 – George Harrison releases “Best of Dark Horse 1976-89” album.
• 2001 – Apple releases the iPod.
• 2006 – “Irreplaceable” single released by Beyonce (Billboard Song of the Year 2007).
• 2006 – My Chemical Romance releases their third studio album, “The Black Parade.”
• 2007 – Rounder Records releases “Raising Sand,” a collaborative album by American bluegrass singer Alison Krauss and British rock vocalist Robert Plant; tops the chart in Norway, peaks at No. 2 in US, UK, and Sweden.
• 2015 – Adele releases her single “Hello,” becomes the first song with more than a million downloads in its first week.
• 2020 – Columbia Records releases Bruce Springsteen‘s 20th studio album “Letter To You,” recorded with the E Street Band.

*pictured.

The Dodgers have been dead for a week. The sting has dissipated. The World Series starts Friday.

For the first time in three years, Los Angeles faces a Fall Classic with no rooting interest.

Might we suggest the Milwaukee Brewers?

No?

So maybe the sting has not dissipated, not after the Brewers so rudely swept the Dodgers in the National League Championship Series. But did you see the thousands of Brewers fans that arose within Dodger Stadium to salute the newly crowned NL champions, sticking around long after the Dodgers fans had retreated to traffic jams in the parking lot?

“It’s a good time to be a Milwaukee Brewers fan, for sure,” NLCS MVP Jake Bauers said. “It’s always fun going into a road stadium, especially in a postseason environment, and coming out with a win and seeing how many people hang around after the game.”

The Brewers are L.A.’s team, at least for the next week.

Read more:Shaikin: Might MLB have to sacrifice World Series TV revenue in exchange for competitive balance?

Bauers and closer Trevor Megill played at Marina High in Huntington Beach. Team captain Christian Yelich played at Westlake High. The roster also features infielders Brice Turang (Corona Santiago) and Joey Ortiz (Garden Grove Pacifica), outfielder Garrett Mitchell (Orange Lutheran), and pitcher JoJo Romero (Oxnard).

It’s not just about a count of hometown players. The Brewers have left their mark on our area in a much more lasting way.

In 2018, Yelich and former Brewers teammates Ryan Braun (Granada Hills) and Mike Moustakas (Chatsworth) launched California Strong, a disaster relief fund born of twin tragedies: the mass shooting that killed 13 at the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks and the Woolsey fire, which roared from Simi Valley to Malibu, burned almost 100,000 acres and forced nearly 300,000 people to evacuate their homes.

“Just trying to do some good,” Yelich said. “It was something we wanted to do to try to help out the community.”

Former Rams quarterback Jared Goff pitched in, as did Mike Attanasio, a son of Brewers owner Mark Attanasio. The local YMCA agreed to administer the funds, and the group on occasion met at Mark Attanasio’s Los Angeles home, said Ronnie Stone, president of the Southeast Ventura County YMCA.

Nearly a decade later, California Strong is still going strong, providing more than $3.7 million in financial relief to families affected by disasters across the state, most recently the Altadena and Palisades fires last year.

“We’re not the biggest dollars. We’re the immediate dollars,” Stone said. “Getting money from the government and things like that always takes time. But we’re typically giving money out to people within a couple weeks, as opposed to months. So that was the cool thing about what we did.”

The money could pay for a couple nights at a hotel, or new clothes for work or school. Mark Attanasio recalled how his son delivered $700 to a family in need.

“They started crying,” he said. “Now they could get a computer. It’s easy to lose touch with the reality of what happens when you lose everything.

Read more:Plaschke: Enough is enough. The Dodgers must stop letting Shohei Ohtani pitch

“When you see there’s people who care, that’s tangible, because I’m sure it feels hopeless.”

Attanasio, who made his fortune in money management in Los Angeles, serves on the board of LA28, Harvard-Westlake High and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. But few things attract attention like professional sports, and the curiosity of folks from a Milwaukee team helping out L.A. might have helped grow a Brewers fan base far from Wisconsin.

“I think, over the years, it did,” Attanasio said. “And frankly, over the years, because we crisscrossed with the Dodgers so much, more people know us in California than they would otherwise.”

The Dodgers, grrr. The sting really has not dissipated. We need a laugh.

For that, we turn this column over to Pat Murphy, the Brewers’ manager. In 1986, as the 28-year-old head coach at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, Murphy came across a man in a tan suit, standing on the side of the road beside a broken-down car.

Read more:After NLCS exit, Dodgers face big questions about their aging lineup and future

“Heavyset guy,” Murphy said. “Didn’t recognize him.”

Cellphones had not yet been invented, but the coach offered the stranger a ride to his office, where he could call for assistance. The two men started talking baseball, and eventually Murphy asked the man in the tan suit what he did for a living.

“I work for the Dodgers,” the man said.

“What do you do?” Murphy said.

“I catch,” the man said.

He was Mike Scioscia, and this was the year after he finished ahead of Tony Gwynn and Fernando Valenzuela in the MVP voting.

“I feel like a total fool,” Murphy said. “I gave him a ride home that night and got his car fixed, and we became friends.”

L.A.’s team, with the LOL. Brewers in six.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Over the course of the next couple of months, we might end up looking at this question for a number of players. Winn, Walker, Burleson, Rodriguez. This seems a natural outcome of having a bunch of young players, especially those entering their arbitration-eligible years.

Which takes us to the first discussion point when looking at a potential extension for Alec Burleson. This off-season, Alec is arbitration eligible and will be getting his second bite at the arbitration process this winter. Exact time TBD, depending on CBA machinations. Last spring, I wrote an article asking this same question about JJ Wetherholt. That article dissected what typical pre-arb extensions looked like and anticipated what JJ’s might look like. With Burleson, since he is arbitration-eligible already, we have to look at another class of extension contracts, which are notably quite different than pre-arb extensions. Alec fits in this class called, shockingly, arbitration avoiding extensions.

As I looked over the history of arbitration-avoiding extensions, I had a few observations pop up. One, the frequency of these extensions seems to have abated over the last few years. Right after the last CBA (spring, 2022), teams were hot to sign arbitration avoiding extensions with 19 extensions signed in 2022 (most right after the CBA was ratified) and another 23 in the 2022-2023 off-season (data from Sportrac). In the last three years, that number has tapered off noticeably to 10 (2024), 3 (2025) and 6 (2026).

I created a spreadsheet showing the last 2 years, thinking it is most relevant, but also digestible. I looked back as far as 2021 and really didn’t see many variations, other than volume.

The reasons for arb-avoiding extensions appear to vary. Of course, there are handful of situations where it is clear both player and team are basically getting an early sign on the players’ first bite at free agency – Crochet with Boston, Raleigh with Seattle, Kirk with Toronto and Perdomo with Arizona fit into this group. High value players signing the high-value contracts. These teams had players approaching that goldilocks moment of trade value (4.5 years service time) and they want to lock up the player and avoid the pressure of trading them at peak value or risk losing them for nothing or a steep discount.

A second reason for arb-avoiding extension is … to avoid the arbitration process itself, without buying out FA years. Pasquantino fits this mode, as does a previous contract with Tommy Edman (one of StL’s arb-avoiding extensions). Drew Rasmussen of Tampa fits, too. I write this even as I watch him price himself out of Tampa with a stellar game against the, ahem, Guardians, but also likely guarantee they take his option and flip him in July. Such is the life of a player on a churn team.

My first look at Alec Burleson is … does he neatly fit either category? The second category is likely just a personal preference and since he has not gone through the actual arbitration process, we don’t know his feelings about that. So, unknown.

On the first category, is he a player the Cardinals will want to lock up? His goldilocks value point is coming up and would be the trade deadline during the 2027 season. A key question here revolves around whether the Cardinal’s believe they have adequate talent to replace him if he were to depart 1) as a free agent following the 2028 season or 2) in trade before that time, likeliest to happen July, 2027? Interestingly, the Cardinals do have a couple of MLB players (Walker, Herrera) with valuable bats and limited defensive prowess that might be viewed as good fits for first base. They also have a couple bat-first prospects rising in the minors (Deniel Ortiz, Jack Gurevitch) who might factor into their thinking, as well.

Probably the tougher question is around the cost relative to the value. While he is arguably the Cardinal’s best overall hitter, he is not an elite hitter overall and has some serious platoon-split disadvantage when facing left-handed pitching, finishing the 2026 season with an OPS of 51 against LHP.

Another factor in an extension decision is age. Burly is entering his age 28 season and his first free agent year will be his age-30 season. While not unheard for hitters to retain offensive prowess into their thirties, one has to wonder if the Cardinals are eager to pay full FA wages for this hitter’s age 30 and 31 seasons (arb-avoiding extensions typically buy out 2 years of free agency, rarely more, and even then only for younger players with more prime years coming).

If all these considerations come up positive and the Cardinals and Alec Burleson come to agreement, what might it look like? Interestingly, very few first basemen are signed to arb-avoiding extensions. Since the last CBA, I could only find four such characters. Darin Ruf, Matt Olson, Yandy Diaz and Vinnie Pasquantino. Ruf and Pasquantino were not free agency buy-outs, so they fit neatly in the arb-only extension group, which I don’t think is a good comp for Burleson’s case. Matt Olson might be viewed as a different caliber of player, befitting the 8 yr/$168m contract he received from the Braves. I don’t view this as a good comp, either.

That leaves Yandy Diaz in the comp pool (since 2022). Some of the attributes fit. He was a bit older, though, signing at age 31. Not defensively strong. A really good hitter, without necessarily elite power tool, but a really solid hitter. I can see the comp. Now, his contract was back in the post-2022 CBA heyday, and was 3 years/$24m guaranteed, plus a club option for a fourth year at $12m. Does that fit? May be a little low by today’s standard and also may be discounted a bit more heavily due to Diaz’ advanced age at time of signing (he was a late bloomer).

Diaz’ 4 seasons were scheduled to pay out at $6m – $8m – $10m – $12m (option). For comparison, Burly’s 2nd year of arb-eligibility is expected to payout around $8.3m (as compared to Diaz’ 2nd year arb salary of $6m). If I assume the difference is inflation (plus an age discount), a similar Burleson extension (done before the 2027 season) could look like 3-year/$36m guaranteed ($10m – $12m – $14m) with a $16m option on the end, taking him through his age-31 season.

I found another comp in Brent Rooker, although it is not a great comp. The AAV I proposed above matches up at $12m/yr but Rooker signed for 5 years and his power is in the next tier up (or maybe the stadium he plays in is next-tier down, I dunno). As well, the A’s appeared to have other motivations for this sign that the Cardinals probably don’t match. Can we see the Cardinals going here, either in years or in total dollars?

Would a deal somewhere between 3yr/$24m and 5yr/$60m make sense to both parties? It leaves Burly with another bite at the free-agency apple coming into his age-32 season. He seems destined for Philly or New York (Yankees), in my view. The total guaranteed amount of such a contract wouldn’t be burdensome to the Cardinals and unlikely to become an albatross, something a risk averse organization prizes.

Discuss.