Published 12:05 am Sunday, October 25, 2026

MILWAUKEE — The crowd at American Family Field had barely finished crying “Coooop” in unison before collectively erupting during the seventh inning when Milwaukee Brewers rookie Cooper Pratt laced a single to right field for the go-ahead run.

In their first World Series in 44 years, the Brewers keep giving their fans reasons to celebrate. Milwaukee beat the Tampa Bay Rays, 5-4, in Game 2 on Saturday night, erasing a four-run deficit to take a 2-0 series lead.

Tampa Bay jumped to a 4-0 lead in the first inning, but failed to rally from there. Meanwhile, the Brewers chipped away against Rays ace Drew Rasmussen, who exited after just 3 2/3 innings. Then outfielder Sal Frelick, a left-handed hitter known for anything but blasting home runs to center field off lefties, tied the game in the sixth with a solo homer off lefty Ian Seymour. It set the scene for Pratt to atone for an error on the first play of the game.

The World Series now shifts to Tropicana Field for Game 3 on Monday night.

Can the Brewers ever play a lopsided game?

Yes, of course. The record shows that the Brewers won a 22-0 game in August. They won a 20-0 game in September. They even lost by 13 runs one day in late July. But now it’s October, and every game is close.

True, that’s how postseason baseball is supposed to be. But there’s almost always a blowout here or there, a chance for the teams and the viewers to breathe a little bit. Not with these Brewers.

In the NLDS against the San Diego Padres, all four games were decided by one or two runs. In the NLCS with the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Brewers won by one, three, four and two runs, with a save in every game. The World Series opener was decided by a run, and Game 2 started with four Rays runs in the top of the first — but the lead was hardly safe.

The Brewers just grind teams down by running deep counts, slapping singles, dashing around the bases and, yes, hitting home runs. It’s a formula for winning close games, and it’s gotten Milwaukee halfway to a title in the World Series. — Tyler Kepner

Can the Rays rediscover their brand?

In downtown Milwaukee, there are a handful of banners bearing the Brewers’ slogan, “Win Our Way.” Well, the Rays advanced to the World Series doing things their way, too. The styles are similar with aggressive base running, good defense, lots of contact and some small-ball bunting. The Rays’ brand, however, is sort of betraying them.

In the sixth inning Saturday, Liam Hicks was tagged out at home after a poor send from third base coach Brady Williams, who told the catcher to keep going on a single to shallow left field. Jackson Chourio easily threw him out.

Earlier in the inning, the Rays had bunted to advance a runner. It was the second time the Rays bunted during an inning in which they didn’t end up scoring. This, of course, came after they were too aggressive in Game 1, with Victor Mesa Jr. going as far as apologizing to teammates for attempting to steal third and getting thrown out to end an inning.

The Rays probably shouldn’t deviate too much from their style — they need to execute it better. Their defense is uncharacteristically slipping, too, with a ball dropping in left field during the sixth and a ball going through first baseman Jonathan Aranda’s legs in the fourth inning. — Will Sammon

Does the Brewers’ bullpen have a weakness?

It sure doesn’t look that way. After Logan Henderson’s 35-pitch first inning in Game 2, you knew the Brewers would need a village to cobble together nine innings. In other words, more than just Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby and Trevor Megill.

After Henderson held down Tampa Bay in the second and third, Pat Murphy turned to three relievers for one inning apiece, bridging the game to his late-game beasts. JoJo Romero, Dustin May and DL Hall each kept the Rays off the scoreboard, giving the lineup a chance to make a comeback.

As a whole, the Brewers’ bullpen has a 1.24 ERA this postseason — and it’s not just the big three leading them to victories. — Kepner

Can the Rays recover?

The Rays needed to leave Milwaukee with at least one win. Before each of the first two games, multiple Tampa Bay officials stressed the importance of boarding a plane home with the series at least tied. Well, so much for all that.

It’s looking bleak for the Rays. Their rotation advantage doesn’t matter much after Rasmussen’s short outing. They didn’t have a strikeout-reliever to face Pratt in the seventh inning, and they paid for it. They’ll have the red-hot Freddy Peralta ready for Game 3, but they face the grim reality of it possibly being his only start in the series. The only upshot for the Rays is they’re dynamite at Tropicana Field, but this time they’re playing there with their backs firmly against the wall. — Sammon

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