The Rays return to Tropicana Field down two games to none, with their first World Series title chase suddenly resting on a response that has to begin Monday night. Milwaukee took both games at home after entering the Series as the Major Leagues’ top regular-season club and fresh off an NLCS sweep of the two-time defending champion Dodgers.
Key takeaways
- Teams that win the opening two games at home in the current 2-3-2 postseason format have captured 47 of 58 best-of-seven series.
- Tampa Bay went 59-27 at Tropicana Field this season and is 4-1 there in the postseason.
- ALCS MVP Freddy Peralta will start Game 3 for the Rays after posting a 7-0 record and 0.89 ERA across his last 10 appearances.
- The Rays have not erased a 2-0 World Series deficit since the Yankees overcame the Braves in 1996.
- Cam Booser and closer Bryan Baker have become Kevin Cash’s most dependable late-inning options.
Peralta gets the ball as Tampa Bay looks for clean baseball
Game 3 is set for Monday at 8 p.m. ET, and the Rays will hand the ball to Peralta with their season’s direction on the line. The right-hander has been nearly unhittable over the past two months, working nine starts among his last 10 outings while allowing opponents little room to breathe.
Tampa Bay entered the Series believing its rotation could offset Milwaukee’s deeper lineup and dominant relief corps. That edge has not shown up yet. The Brewers won the first two games even after the Rays adjusted their pitching plans to get ace Drew Rasmussen into Game 2 on five days of rest.
Cash said the club remains confident in its ability to answer back, noting that both teams will send quality pitchers out in Game 3. His players are trying to keep the focus on the next nine innings rather than the 2-0 hole.
“We are behind, but the World Series is not over,” designated hitter Yandy Díaz said through interpreter Kevin Vera. “There is still work left for us.”
The Rays have reason to believe the ballpark change can matter. They were outstanding at Tropicana Field during the regular season, then added a 4-1 home postseason mark. Center fielder Jonny DeLuca said the clubhouse still trusts its talent and its bond, calling the chance to regain momentum over the next few games “a great story” waiting to happen.
History is not especially friendly, though it is not final. Sixteen clubs have recovered from a 2-0 postseason series deficit, including the Blue Jays in last year’s ALCS and the D-backs in the 2023 NLCS. Doing it on the World Series stage is rarer; no club has pulled it off in three decades.
If Tampa Bay can force a Game 5, it could line up Nick Martinez, Rasmussen and Peralta as its three most trusted starters for the rest of the Series. Game 4 remains less defined, with right-hander Griffin Jax a likely candidate for either an opening assignment or bulk innings. Should elimination arrive, Cash could use every available option.
The first adjustment is simpler than the rotation board: play sharper. Left fielder Chandler Simpson put it plainly after the first two games, saying the Rays need to “play clean” against Milwaukee.
That had been a Tampa Bay calling card all season. The Rays typically made sound decisions, limited free passes, put balls in play and turned defensive chances into outs. In Milwaukee, those habits slipped. Their uneven play led Junior Caminero to bark at teammates in the dugout, an emotional push meant to wake up a club that had looked unlike itself.
The middle innings need a new answer
Peralta can set the tone, but he may not be able to finish the job alone. Unless he works seven or eight innings in Game 3, the Rays will need somebody beyond Booser and Baker to carry meaningful outs before the ninth.
Two months ago, Tampa Bay’s bullpen appeared built to be a strength for the stretch run. Now the bridge has become the concern. Booser has delivered as the leading left-handed option, while Baker has remained effective this month despite reduced fastball velocity.
Beyond them, the results have been rough. Garrett Cleavinger is the lone reliever besides Booser and Baker not to allow a run, but he recorded only two outs in Game 1 in his first appearance since Sept. 4. Kevin Kelly has surrendered eight hits in four innings, Tyler Wells has been charged with five runs on six hits, and Ian Seymour yielded the game-tying home run in Game 2 amid a difficult relief stretch.
Jax or Martinez could become part of the solution, especially with the Game 4 plan still fluid. But the Rays need a reliever to seize a high-leverage spot and make the route from Peralta to Baker feel stable again. At home, with no margin left for another sloppy night, that may be the difference between extending the Series and watching Milwaukee tighten its grip on it.
