World Series Game 1: The Brewers Strike First and Hold On in Milwaukee

Milwaukee waited 44 years for another World Series game, and the Brewers did not waste it. They beat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 on Friday night at American Family Field to take a 1-0 series lead. It was the first World Series game ever played in that building, and the Brewers gave their fans exactly what they have been giving them all October: early runs, a big arm on the mound and a bullpen that does not break.

A Fast Start

Jacob Misiorowski set the tone with his very first pitch. It was clocked at 103.5 mph, the fastest pitch thrown in a World Series game since pitch tracking began in 2008. That is one way to say hello.

Then the Brewers went to work against Rays starter Nick Martinez. Christian Yelich tripled to drive in Jackson Chourio in the first inning, and William Contreras followed with an RBI hit to make it 2-0 before Tampa Bay recorded three outs. Martinez settled down after that and pitched five innings, but those two runs were enough to hang the loss on him. Steven Matz, Kevin Kelly, Garrett Cleavinger and Cole Sulser covered the last three innings out of the Tampa Bay bullpen.

Misiorowski and the Bullpen

The big question about Misiorowski coming in was whether he could go deep into a game. He had not finished five innings in either of his first two postseason starts. On Friday, he went exactly five, allowing one run on four hits with three strikeouts. Tampa Bay’s only run against him came in the fourth inning, when Liam Hicks drove in Jonathan Aranda to make it 2-1.

From there, it was the bullpen I wrote about all week. Abner Uribe got four outs. Aaron Ashby got five more and struck out three. The Rays went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position, and Milwaukee added an insurance run off Matz in the seventh when Chourio’s hit down the right-field line brought home Cooper Pratt to make it 3-1.

A Nervous Ninth

Trevor Megill made it interesting. The Rays loaded the bases in the ninth, and Hicks drove in his second run of the night to cut the lead to 3-2. A play that looked like it ended the game was overturned on replay, which kept the Rays alive a little longer. Megill finally got the last out for the save, and Milwaukee exhaled.

Jonathan Aranda was the best hitter on the field for Tampa Bay with three hits and a walk. Chourio and Contreras had two hits apiece for the Brewers.

My Pick Is Looking Good, For Now

I picked Brewers in six, and I said the bullpen would be the difference. One game in, that looks right. But this was a one-run game, and the Rays were a base hit away from tying it in the ninth. Tampa Bay came back from 2-1 down against Cleveland in the ALCS, so nobody in that clubhouse is panicking.

What’s Next

Game	Date	Location	Result / Time (ET)
Game 1	Fri., Oct. 23	Milwaukee	Brewers 3, Rays 2
Game 2	Sat., Oct. 24	Milwaukee	8 p.m., FOX
Game 3	Mon., Oct. 26	St. Petersburg	8 p.m., FOX
Game 4	Tue., Oct. 27	St. Petersburg	8 p.m., FOX
Game 5*	Wed., Oct. 28	St. Petersburg	8 p.m., FOX
Game 6*	Fri., Oct. 30	Milwaukee	8 p.m., FOX
Game 7*	Sat., Oct. 31	Milwaukee	8 p.m., FOX

*If necessary

Game 2 is Saturday night, just a few hours after WNBA Finals Game 4 tips off in Atlanta. It is a good weekend to be a sports fan. A Brewers win sends them to Florida up 2-0. A Rays win steals home field and sends the series back to St. Petersburg tied.

Either way, Milwaukee has its first World Series win since 1982. I am ready for Game 2.

Featured photo: Inside American Family Field, Milwaukee by Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.