Brewers rally past Rays 5–4 for 2–0 World Series lead
Six scoreless relief innings gave Milwaukee time to erase a four-run deficit, with two-thirds of those outs coming before it took the lead.
The Milwaukee Brewers are two wins from their first World Series championship after overturning a four-run deficit to beat the Tampa Bay Rays 5–4 on Saturday, October 24. Their 2–0 series lead came from a comeback built gradually: an immediate reply, a defensive rescue and six innings in which Tampa Bay could not add another run. Field Level Media
Sal Frelick hit the tying home run and Cooper Pratt delivered the winning single. But another number helps explain why those hits were enough: 12 of Milwaukee’s 18 relief outs came while the Brewers were trailing or tied. Much of the bullpen’s work went into keeping a victory possible before there was a lead to protect. MLB’s official game record
Tampa Bay’s four runs arrived in the first inning. Pratt’s throwing error allowed Yandy Díaz to reach second; singles by Chandler Simpson and Junior Caminero brought home the first two runs, and Liam Hicks followed with a two-run homer. Milwaukee immediately recovered half the deficit through run-scoring singles from William Contreras and Garrett Mitchell. Starter Logan Henderson completed three innings before handing over to the relievers. Field Level Media
From there, the pitching and scoring fitted together like this, according to the official play-by-play:
| Inning | Milwaukee’s scoreless relief work | Milwaukee’s response |
|---|---|---|
| Fourth | JoJo Romero gets three outs | Pratt scores on Jonathan Aranda’s fielding error; Rays lead 4–3 |
| Fifth | Dustin May gets three outs | No run; Rays still lead 4–3 |
| Sixth | DL Hall gets three outs, including Hicks thrown out at home | Frelick homers; tied 4–4 |
| Seventh | Abner Uribe gets three outs | Pratt singles home Brice Turang; Brewers lead 5–4 |
| Eighth and ninth | Uribe gets one more out; Aaron Ashby gets the final five | No further scoring; Milwaukee wins 5–4 |
That is nine relief outs while Milwaukee was behind, three while tied and six while ahead. Three scoreless innings gave the Brewers room to draw level; another kept the game tied until Pratt put them in front.
The sixth inning also shows why a pitcher’s scoreless line belongs partly to the fielders behind him. With two outs and Hicks at second, Victor Mesa Jr. singled to left. Jackson Chourio threw home, where Contreras tagged Hicks out to end the inning. Tampa Bay challenged the play, but the rulings were upheld. The Rays’ lead stayed at one run. Official play-by-play
Frelick then opened Milwaukee’s half of the sixth with a home run to center against Ian Seymour. Because Hicks had been stopped, that one swing brought the Brewers level. An inning later, Turang doubled and advanced to third on Garrett Mitchell’s flyout. With one out, Tampa Bay brought in Kevin Kelly to face Pratt, whose single to right scored Turang for Milwaukee’s first lead. MLB’s recap
Ashby still had a narrow margin to defend. Jonny DeLuca doubled to begin the ninth, putting the tying run at second with nobody out. Ashby struck out Mesa, then Ben Williamson’s groundout moved DeLuca to third. Díaz’s strikeout ended the game; MLB’s recap described the final strike as a ruling that he had swung at the pitch. DeLuca finished stranded one base from a tie. Official game record, MLB’s recap
Game 3 is scheduled for Monday, October 26, at 8 p.m. Eastern at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. Milwaukee’s Robert Gasser is set to face Tampa Bay’s Freddy Peralta, the former Brewers pitcher, with the Rays seeking their first win of the series. MLB’s Game 3 preview
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