The Brewers and Rays will face off in the 2026 World Series, a fascinating matchup between two of baseball’s best and smartest teams, but also organizations that have never won the Fall Classic.
Milwaukee set a franchise record by leading the Majors with 103 wins in the regular season, beat the Padres in the NLDS and then swept the Dodgers in the NLCS, dethroning the two-time defending World Series champions to advance to the club’s first Fall Classic since 1982.
The Rays, meanwhile, led the American League with 97 wins, swept the Yankees in the ALDS and beat the Guardians in six games in the ALCS. It’s the club’s third World Series appearance and first since 2020.
There are storylines galore between these two teams. With that in mind, let’s preview the World Series that begins in Milwaukee on Friday.
Who has home-field advantage?
That belongs to the Brewers, who led the Majors with a franchise-record 103 wins during the regular season. That means, of course, that Milwaukee would have held home-field advantage against any possible World Series opponent.
The first two games will begin at Milwaukee’s American Family Field on Oct. 23 and 24, respectively. The series then shifts to St. Petersburg for Games 3 (Oct. 26), 4 (Oct. 27) and 5, if necessary (Oct. 28).
What is each team's World Series history?
The Rays have made two trips to the World Series since their inaugural 1998 season, first in 2008 and again in 2020, but were unsuccessful in both attempts, dropping the first against the Phillies in five games and the second against the Dodgers in six.
The Brewers are also looking for their first championship, but it's been considerably longer since they've made this much progress towards getting there. Their 2026 National League pennant is just the second in franchise history; they won their first 44 years ago, in 1982, in the American League, after which they lost a seven-game World Series matchup against the Cardinals.
What is the head-to-head history between these two teams?
In 28 career meetings, the Brewers have won 15 of those games. That included three games this year in the season’s first week -- the Brewers took two of three games from the Rays in Milwaukee from March 30 to April 1.
What notable connections do the Rays and Brewers share on their current rosters?
Drew Rasmussen is a big one. The Rays’ ace was drafted by Tampa Bay as the 31st overall pick in the 2017 Draft, but opted to return to Oregon State. He underwent his second Tommy John surgery in Sept. 2017, forcing him to miss all of 2018, but the Brewers still picked him in the sixth round of the ‘18 Draft. After debuting with the Brewers in 2020, Rasmussen was a headliner in the deal that sent him to Tampa Bay in exchange for shortstop Willy Adames.
Then there’s ALCS MVP Freddy Peralta, who blossomed into one of baseball’s best starters with the Brewers from 2018-25. Peralta had a 70-42 record with a 3.59 ERA and 1,153 strikeouts in parts of eight seasons. He was the Game 1 starter for the Brewers in the 2024 NL Wild Card Series against the Mets and ‘25 Division Series against the Cubs. He was traded to the Mets last offseason and then sent to the Rays during this year’s Trade Deadline.
2026 NLCS MVP and breakout hitter Jake Bauers also began his career with the Rays as a top prospect before he bounced around with multiple organizations, eventually settling with the Brewers the last three seasons and playing a vital role in Milwaukee’s NL pennant.
The exchange between these two clubs also extends to off-field personnel -- Matt Arnold, currently the Brewers' general manager and president of baseball operations, took his current job after nine seasons in the Rays' front office.
Who are the best players to play for both teams?
Rasmussen, Peralta and Adames are certainly at the top of that list. In terms of career WAR, per Baseball Reference, Adames’ 26.9 mark is tops among active players to play for both teams.
The best player to ever appear for both clubs, though, is probably Greg Vaughn, who spent 15 seasons in the Majors from 1989-2003. He was worth 30.8 career WAR, hit 355 home runs and was a four-time All-Star. Two of those appearances came with the Brewers from 1989-96 (he was traded to the Padres at the ‘96 Deadline) and he made his final All-Star team with the Rays in 2001.
Another notable name is Matt Garza, who excelled with the Rays from 2008-10 and was the 2008 ALCS MVP for Tampa Bay. He spent his last four seasons in the Majors with the Rays from 2014-17.
What are the keys to this matchup?
1. Can Tampa Bay contain Milwaukee’s all-around excellence?
The Brewers led the Majors with 103 wins in the regular season. They took down baseball’s hottest team (the Padres) in four games in the NLDS. They then swept the reigning two-time World Series champion Dodgers in the NLCS. There aren’t a whole lot of flaws on a Brewers squad that can hit, plays elite defense, and boasts baseball’s top starter in Jacob Misiorowski and a shutdown bullpen.
To be clear, this Tampa Bay team is very good -- it led the American League with 98 wins and are in the World Series for a reason. They’re just tasked with taking down a Brewers team that’s firing on all cylinders, in every facet of the game.
2. Which team can find that extra edge?
It’s no secret that the Brewers and Rays are two of the smartest organizations in all of baseball. Year in and year out, these clubs manage to blow past expectations thanks to smart front offices, excellent coaching staffs, a full embrace of both analytics and scouting and an ability to implement it on the field. The Athletic’s Eno Sarris recently documented these “Moneyball-like edges” (subscription required) putting the Brewers and Rays ahead of the pack.
Now, we can see these clubs find those edges in some of the most important games in each franchise’s history. Whether it’s bullpen management, pitch arsenal tweaks between games or platoon decisions, the two teams will surely be operating at their best. Given that they’re both fighting for their first World Series titles, those decisions and results are even more important than your usual Fall Classic matchup.
3. Can the Brewers keep slugging?
For all of the Brewers’ strengths, hitting home runs wasn’t one of them … in the regular season. After tying for the second fewest home runs (154) in the Majors during the regular season, the Brewers have crushed 10 homers in seven games in the postseason. That is a huge turn of events considering the current low-scoring run environment in the playoffs -- teams are averaging 3.5 runs-per-game in the postseason, compared to 4.48 runs in the regular season.
Six Brewers have homered so far in the postseason, including three home runs from William Contreras, two apiece from Garrett Mitchell and Jackson Chourio and one each from Jake Bauers, Brice Turang and David Hamilton. If that continues, chalk it up to another edge Milwaukee could have in the series.