The Milwaukee Brewers moved within one victory of securing their first World Series championship after overwhelming the Tampa Bay Rays 10-1 in Game 3 on Monday night at Tropicana Field. The Brewers capitalized on an impressive eight-run fifth inning, highlighted by key contributions from Jackson Chourio and Brice Turang, to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Rookie left-hander Robert Gasser delivered a dominant pitching performance, allowing just a single hit over six innings and facing the minimum number of batters through that stretch. Gasser became the first starter in Brewers postseason history to reach the sixth inning and the first left-handed pitcher to face the minimum through six innings in a World Series game since Sandy Koufax in 1965. His strong outing limited Tampa Bay’s offense, which managed only one run and struggled to find momentum against Milwaukee’s pitching staff.
The Brewers secured 16 hits in total, with Chourio going 4-for-5 and William Contreras adding three hits. The team’s seven consecutive hits during the fifth inning set a postseason record for hits with two outs, turning the game decidedly in Milwaukee’s favor. The inning featured a controversial replay call, which overturned what initially appeared to be a force out at second base, extending the rally that ultimately accounted for eight runs.
Tampa Bay’s starting pitcher, Freddy Peralta, who earned MVP honors in the American League Championship Series, ran into trouble early and was charged with five runs on seven hits over four and two-thirds innings against his former team. The Rays' defense and baserunning, areas of concern in previous games, again faltered, allowing Milwaukee to capitalize and pull away from the home crowd of 40,388, which included many Brewers fans cheering from behind the visitors’ dugout.
The Brewers, led by manager Pat Murphy, 67, have now won eight consecutive postseason games. Should they claim victory in Tuesday’s Game 4, also at Tropicana Field, Milwaukee would clinch their first World Series title in franchise history. The team’s previous appearance came in 1982, representing the American League at the time, where they fell in seven games to St. Louis.
On the other side, the Rays entered the series with the American League’s best regular-season record of 98 wins and succeeded in sweeping the New York Yankees and defeating the Cleveland Guardians in the playoffs. However, their efforts have been undermined by uncharacteristic mistakes and a lack of execution at critical moments in the World Series. Tampa Bay has yet to win a World Series in franchise history, with previous appearances ending in losses to Philadelphia in 2008 and Los Angeles in 2020.
Despite the loss, Rays third baseman Junior Caminero acknowledged Milwaukee’s superior play. “They’re just playing better and things are going their way,” he said after Monday’s game.
With history and momentum in their favor, the Brewers are poised to sweep the series if they win Game 4, an achievement that would mark the first time since the 1976 Cincinnati Reds that a team has swept both a League Championship Series and the World Series.