The Month That Was in Baseball: October 2026

Thursday, October 1

The Atlanta Braves use pure power to punish the Philadelphia Phillies in the deciding game of the best-of-three Wild Card Series, riding three home runs to account for all of their runs in a 6-2 victory. But perhaps the biggest buzz coming out of Truist Park is Braves manager Walt Weiss’ choice of pitchers. Starting is 32-year-old reliever Ray Kerr, who’s spent his last 10 years mostly in the minors and, as recently as four years ago, was working at a 7-11 to make ends meet; Kerr shines with 3.1 shutout innings, allowing just two baserunners. Finishing is ace Chris Sale, locking up the series with a four-out save including three strikeouts. Meanwhile, brand-name Phillies pitchers can’t get the job done. Starter Aaron Nola lasts only 1.2 innings, serving up the Braves’ first home run—a three-run shot from Michael Harris II. Zack Wheeler takes over in the third, and allows Atlanta’s second blast, a two-run homer from Ozzie Albies. Matt Olson caps the night with a solo bomb in the seventh off Jonathan Bowlan. 

It’s the Braves’ first postseason series triumph since winning the 2021 World Series. They move on to the NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

Despite rumors to the contrary, the Arizona Diamondbacks will retain manager Torey Lovullo for two more years. The longest serving, and winningest, manager in franchise history, the 61-year-old Lovullo was thought to be on his way out after failing to make the playoffs for a third straight season after capturing a surprise NL pennant in 2023—but the DBacks were impressed with his ability to hold the team together through injuries and more off-field distraction from star second baseman Ketel Marte. 

Friday, October 2

The second round of the MLB postseason will begin with the game’s two most dominant stars feeling far from 100%. 

The Yankees are set to open their ALDS series against the Rays at St. Petersburg without Aaron Judge, who’s been left off the team roster as he continues to mend a strained right calf. Meanwhile in Los Angeles, Shohei Ohtani will be available for the start of their NLDS against Atlanta, with some sources saying that the four-time MVP is tanned, rested and ready from needed time off in September—while the likely truth is that he’s still banged up from pains emanating from his knee, neck and biceps, and thus may not be at his super-human best. “As of now, it’s just something I’m just going to have to manage,” he tell reporters. 

The postseason has always been a story of “what if’s,” with star players absent or far from game-fit for a big moment. Eccentric Philadelphia A’s ace Rube Waddell missed the 1904 World Series after hurting his shoulder playfully wrestling with teammate Andy Coakley on a train platform. (The A’s bowed in five games to the New York Giants.) Ted Williams, days before his first (and, eventually, only) World Series in 1946 for the Red Sox, was plunked on the elbow in a warm-up exhibition and batted poorly against the St. Louis Cardinals, who won in seven games. The absence of Tony Conigiliaro, a rising star for the Red Sox in 1967 before brutally taking a pitch to the face that summer, might have played a factor in their seven-game Fall Classic defeat to, again, the Cardinals. 

Sometimes, the beat-up big guy could still make a big difference. Best example: Kirk Gibson, all but in a million pieces during the 1988 postseason, famously made his lone plate appearance in the World Series count—launching a walkoff homer against a powerful Oakland team in Game One, cementing the scene for the Dodgers’ stunning five-game upset. 

Will Ohtani be effective enough to make a difference? Will Judge even get the chance? 

Saturday, October 3

The Milwaukee Brewers are a really, really good baseball team—and in Game One of the NLDS against the visiting Padres, they’re also really, really lucky. With Trevor Megill trying to close out a 3-2 victory in the ninth for the Brewers, the Padres’ Ty France launches a high, soaring drive down the left-field line that looks to be on its way out for a go-ahead, two-runner homer—except that it deflects downward off a cable under the American Family Field roof, right to Milwaukee left fielder Jackson Chourio for the second out. Under the ground rules, any ball hitting any part of the roof in Milwaukee above fair territory is a live ball; while it’s arguable as to whether France’s blast, untouched, would have gone fair or foul, there’s little debate that it would have landed past the foul pole. 

The 3-2 loss for the Padres is all the more bittersweet as they do an effective job of wearing down Milwaukee ace Jacob Misiorowski, who allows two runs through four innings with six strikeouts, laboring for 88 pitches—30 of them hit foul. Post-Misiorowski, the Brewers’ bullpen does not allow a run through five innings, and the offense overcomes an early 2-0 deficit on two swings: Chourio’s game-tying home run in the third, and William Contreras’ go-ahead solo blast in the seventh. 

Chourio’s homer is his fifth career postseason shot for Milwaukee, the most by any Brewers player over the 64 playoff games the franchise has played. 

Misiorowski’s first pitch of the game, tracked at 104.8 MPH, is the fastest ever thrown in a postseason game since velocities began being officially recorded in 2008. Before that, Detroit’s Joel Zumaya also threw one at 104.8 MPH during the 2006 ALCS against the Yankees. 

 No cables, girders or catwalks are struck at enclosed Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, as few runs—and very few hits, if you’re the Yankees—are notched in Tampa Bay’s opening 1-0 ALDS win over New York. Jonathan Aranda’s third-inning solo homer provides the game’s lone run, and the Rays’ Drew Rasmussen backs up the narrow lead by taking a no-hitter into the eighth inning. It’s then, with two outs, that heartbreak occurs for both Rasmussen and the Yankees. Austin Wells slices a liner down the right-field line for extra bases, ending Rasmussen’s no-hit bid—but Wells dumbfoundingly attempts to stretch a double into a triple. The ball arrives well before he does to third base, getting tagged out to end the inning. Rasmussen departs after the eighth on 101 pitches; Bryan Baker takes over in the ninth and closes out the Yankees in order, striking out two. 

Rasmussen will end being the only pitcher to make it through eight innings on the mound during the entire 2026 postseason. 

The Chicago White Sox begin their ALDS against divisional rival Cleveland with a 3-0 road victory, as five pitchers shut down the Guardians on three hits and five walks. Grant Taylor, the last of those five Chicago pitchers who’s never thrown more than 2.2 innings in 96 previous major league appearances, tosses four shutout frames with six strikeouts to earn the victory. Putting the White Sox on the board is first-year Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami, who crushes a fourth-inning pitch from Guardians rookie Parker Messick 440 feet for a 2-0 lead. Colson Montgomery will add insurance with a seventh-inning RBI double to cap the scoring. 

In three playoff games thus far, the White Sox have yet to trail their opponents. 

In searing 100-degree heat that leaves much of Dodger Stadium’s field-level mustard seats unoccupied, the Dodgers ease to a 5-3 NLDS Game One victory over the Braves. Tarik Skubal’s Los Angeles postseason debut is a sharp one, allowing a run on two hits over six innings; three home runs provide the Dodgers with all of their scoring, with a two-run blast in the fourth by Teoscar Hernandez, and sixth-inning shots from Kyle Tucker and Max Muncy. 

Sunday, October 4

Are the 2026 Brewers that team of destiny, like the 1984 Tigers, 1986 Mets and 2016 Cubs—elite ballclubs who had the added vibe of everything going their way, whether by merit or serendipity? A day after a cable under their ballpark roof altered the trajectory of a deep fly—and thus the result in their favor—the Brewers turns a looming loss into a stunning walkoff victory. The opposing Padres take a 3-2 lead into the bottom of the ninth and have marquee closer Mason Miller ready to wrap things up. Miller already looks sharp, having retired the side on 12 pitches with two strikeouts in the eighth on three days’ rest. But after inducing a ground out to start the ninth, Miller suddenly begins to labor—walking three of the next four batters to load the bases. That brings up Jackson Chourio, perhaps the Brewers’ most dangerous (and certainly most confident) batter; after missing at two early pitches, Chourio rips a searing low liner that gets past a diving Jake Cronenworth at second, into center field to score two runs including the game-winner for a 4-3 victory to give Milwaukee a 2-0 series lead.  

Chourio is the second youngest player ever to punch out a walkoff hit in a postseason game; Edgar Renteria, at age 21, did it twice during the 1997 World Series for the Florida Marlins. 

In his failed attempt at a two-inning save, Miller throws 40 pitches—the most he’s thrown in a game since his 2023 rookie season, when he was a hybrid starter/long reliever for the Oakland A’s. 

The Braves take the risk of saving ace Chris Sale for another day, and get rewarded with a pure bullpen effort in a 3-2 victory at Los Angeles over the Dodgers, evening up their NLDS at a game apiece. Ray Kerr, who shined in his first postseason appearance three days earlier against the Phillies, gets the opening nod and throws 2.2 more shutout innings before finishing his day. Meanwhile, the Dodgers’ Blake Snell struggles in a short (3.2 innings) stint with five walks, but escapes with just one of eight Atlanta baserunners plating. The Braves unlock a 1-1 tie in the fifth when Michael Harris II, after a two-out triple, scores on a wild Kris Bubic pitch. Harris will later give the Braves critical insurance with a seventh-inning RBI double, again with two outs. The Braves hold the lead thanks to a stretch of 14 consecutive outs, snapped in the ninth of Max Muncy’s solo homer; closer Raisel Iglesias enters to retire promising rookie Josue De Paula on three pitches to seal the win. 

Monday, October 5

The Yankees stumble, fumble and bumble their way to their second loss in as many games against the Rays at St. Petersburg, as their 5-2 loss puts them in a big-time hole in the best-of-five ALDS. Cam Schlittler is the snakebit pitcher who somehow manages to allow just one run in a first inning that includes three New York errors; overall, he’ll last just 4.1 frames, allowing four runs (two of them unearned) on six hits. The Yankees will commit one more error in the game and could easily be charged with two others. Ben Rice does his best to bring the Yankees back with two home runs; unfortunately for New York, they’re both solo shots. The rest of the team combines for two hits, and have only five through the first two games against Rays pitching. Tampa Bay starter Freddy Peralta perhaps gets a premature hook by the Rays, removed just an out shy of qualifying for the win; he allows a run on three hits over just 66 pitches. Cam Booser gets credit for the W by retiring only one batter to end the fifth. 

The Yankees may be in big trouble, but at least they have their next two games at home. The same cannot be said for the Guardians, who fall two games behind the upstart White Sox on home soil—and now have to play their next two at Chicago before anticipated over-enthusiastic crowds. An early 2-0 lead and a solid start for starter Gavin Williams—who strikes out 11 over five innings—is squandered by the Guardians. After allowing a leadoff single in the sixth, Williams is lifted for Eric Sabrowski, followed by Hunter Gaddis—both of whom gang up to allow two hits, a walk, a wild pitch and an error as the White Sox rally for three runs and a 4-2 lead. Meanwhile, Sean Burke will retire 13 straight batters—the second longest such streak by a reliever in MLB postseason history—to keep the Guardians off the bases. An RBI triple by the Guardians’ Jo Adell will cut the White Sox’ lead to a single run in the eighth, but Grant Taylor closes out a 4-3 Chicago win with a 1-2-3 ninth. 

According to STATS, this is the first time—regular season or post—that an MLB team has gotten at least five innings, five or more strikeouts and the win from their relievers in four straight games. 

Sam McDowell, a five-time strikeout champ and one of the most underrated pitchers of his time, passes away just two weeks after his 84th birthday. A six-time All-Star who won the 1965 AL ERA title, the Pittsburgh-born southpaw was an intimidating force through the 1960s for the Cleveland Indians, but struggled to keep his name on the baseball marquee in a period dominated by the likes of Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Juan Marichal and Don Drysdale. Along with the K’s came the strays, as McDowell walked 100+ batters in eight straight years—five times leading the league—and three times led in wild pitches. After a contract squabble that, alas, involved then-commissioner Bowie Kuhn to stick his nose into things, the Indians dealt McDowell to the Giants in a trade that would turn out great for Cleveland (they got Gaylord Perry) and terrible for the Giants, as McDowell quickly deteriorated; a battle with the bottle didn’t help. (He would sober up in 1980, five years after throwing his last pitch.) 

Tuesday, October 6

A couple blasts from the past lift the Dodgers and haunt the Braves as Los Angeles takes a 2-1 NLDS lead with a 3-1 Game Three victory. After striking out six batters over his first two innings, Atlanta ace Chris Sale becomes prone to the long ball. He survives a potential home run by Freddie Freeman in the third when it’s caught above the left-field wall by Mauricio Dubon, but two more long flies easily clear the wall in the fourth. The first is a two-run homer socked out by Kiké Hernandez, resuming his usual habit of thriving in the playoffs after floundering through the regular season; the second is a solo shot from Freeman, the former Brave who, this time, makes sure it’s hit far enough to not have it robbed by an Atlanta outfielder. The three runs in the fourth are all the Dodgers will need, as Yoshinobu Yamamoto takes it from there to secure the victory with seven sparkling innings, allowing a run on four hits with 10 strikeouts. Yamamoto is now 8-1 with a 2.14 ERA in postseason play; only Clayton Kershaw (13) has more playoff wins in a Dodgers uniform. 

After two spellbinding wins at Milwaukee, the Brewers run out of miracle dust and fail to conjure up enough late-inning magic to overcome the Padres with a 4-3 loss in NLDS Game Three at San Diego. The Padres survive despite the absence of closer Mason Miller (on paternity leave) and set-up reliever Adrian Morejon (shoulder). Michael King, just two days off a five-inning, 72-pitch start in Game One, takes the ball in the eighth and produces a six-out shutout save. King does walk two batters in the ninth, but with one out, the Brewers’ Christian Yelich—who in his previous at-bat snapped a drought of 87 playoff plate appearances without an RBI with a run-scoring single—hits a sharp grounder that turns into a game-ending double play. Yelich’s GDP ends a frustrating night for Milwaukee, which outhits the Padres 11-6 and strands 11 baserunners. It’s the Brewers’ 12th straight postseason road loss, tying the MLB mark held by the Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins from 1925-87; they’ve only won six of 30 playoff games on the road since their 1969 inception. 

It’s reported that the Phillies are looking again to hire former Alex Cora as their new skipper—and Cora is again saying no thanks. The former Red Sox manager, fired in Boston after an awful start in 2026, was approached by the Phillies after they, too, crashed out of the gate and fired Rob Thomson; Cora declined them then. He is said to be looking to take the 2027 season off—as might everyone else in baseball should a looming work stoppage become reality and get out of hand. 

Wednesday, October 7

The Brewers and Dodgers, the teams with MLB’s two best regular season records, are headed for an NLCS rematch after each clinch their Divisional Series on the road. 

At Atlanta, the Dodgers overcome an early deficit and another fine start by the Braves’ Tyler Mahle to triumph in NLDS Game Four, 4-1. The Braves take a 1-0 lead in the first after Michael Harris II singles, steals second, moves to third on a grounder and scores on a Tyler Glasnow wild pitch. The Dodgers counter in the second when Shohei Ohtani walks, steals second (advancing to third on a wild throw), then scores on a dropped pop fly by Atlanta shortstop Mauricio Dubon. The game remains tied at 1-1 into the seventh, when Mahle is pulled after giving up a one-out single. Mahle likely has some gas left in the tank with 85 pitches thrown, but the Braves, like most teams, go not with their gut but with the spreadsheet. This intuition fails them; Didier Fuentes walks two of the three batters he faces in replacing Mahle, bowing to Robert Suarez—who on a 3-2, two-out pitch, gives up a two-run single to Andy Pages, handing the Dodgers a 3-1 lead that will stick. 

As much as the Braves’ bullpen succumbs to the Dodgers, the real (and unexpected) weakness for Atlanta in the NLDS is its hitting. The Braves bat .145 for the entire series—the lowest ever recorded for a postseason series in franchise history—and are only 1-for-23 with runners in scoring position. By comparison, the Dodgers bat a relatively less anemic .203—but outhomer the Braves, 8-2. 

The Dodgers’ first three runs are scored without the benefit of a home run; they had scored their previous 10 runs against the Braves via the long ball, setting a major league mark to start a postseason. 

Perhaps in response to Mahle’s ill-timed exit, the New York Times’ Tyler Kepner laments the lack of trust that managers seem to be giving their starters thus far in the postseason. “I’m over 50 now, so I know I’m yelling at clouds,” Kepner posts on X. “But the way teams limit starting pitchers in October, you’d think that starters get routinely shelled all through the regular season. Aren’t some of these guys actually good?” 

Later in San Diego, 3-1 is the magic margin for Milwaukee as it wins both the game and NLDS by the same count over the Padres. Fernando Tatis Jr.’s solo homer in the third ties the game at 1-1 for San Diego, but it will end up being the Padres’ last hit of the evening. Not that the Padres don’t give it their best shot; trailing by two runs with a runner on base in the eighth, Manny Machado drives a deep fly to just right of center—but Milwaukee center fielder Garrett Mitchell reaches his glove up above the short Petco Park fence and, with a horde of Padres fans ready to compete for the souvenir, manages to snare the ball without interference, robbing Machado of a game-tying homer. Mitchell had earlier given the Brewers the lead in the fifth with a lead-off triple, scoring on Jackson Chourio’s single. Insurance is provided an inning later on Sal Frelick’s sac fly. The victory ends Milwaukee’s 12-game road skid in the playoffs, which had tied a major league postseason record. 

How tight was this series? It’s the first time since the 1915 World Series between the Red Sox and Phillies that a playoff series lasting no less than three games had neither team leading by more than two runs at any point. 

The Tampa Bay Rays join the Dodgers and Brewers in stamping their ticket to the third-round Championship Series, sweeping away the Yankees with a 4-3 victory at New York—where they also clinched the AL East back on September 22. Left fielder Victor Mesa Jr. figures prominently for the Rays in the game’s two biggest moments, both in the sixth inning. His two-run solo homer, off Yankees starter Max Fried, breaks a 2-2 tie and provides the Rays with their ultimate game-winning tallies; in the bottom half of the inning, Mesa is wavering back toward the wall in pursuit of a deep Anthony Volpe fly, but the ball is snatched out of the air above him by a Yankees bleacher fan for an apparent game-tying homer. Umpires gather to discuss and call for a review, discovering that the fan interfered with the ball over the warning track. The play is re-ruled as a double with the runner on first (George Lombard Jr.) allowed to score because there were two outs—but Spencer Jones next strikes out swinging, stranding Volpe at second as the tying run. Over the next three innings, the Yankees will not be able to mount a serious rally, ending their postseason run. 

The Yankees never led at any point against the Rays in the series; they have now gone 17 straight years without a world title, just one season short of their longest such drought since becoming a baseball superpower in 1920. 

Is it time to provide some buffer zones between eager souvenir-catching fans and the outfield wall? That’s always been a problem at both Yankee Stadiums (see Jeffrey Meier, 1996), and it nearly caused havoc for Garrett Mitchell at Petco Park on his successful steal of Manny Machado’s would-be homer. Let’s consider making it easier for the outfielders to make the catch, for the umpires to make the call—while decreasing the risk of fans being ejected from the ballpark for interfering, as the guys who got in the way of Volpe’s deep fly found out. 

One LDS series remains to be settled, as the Guardians stave off elimination with a 9-3 victory over the White Sox before a raucous, “Black-out” crowd of 40,590 at Rate Field, all wearing black. Trailing 1-0 in the third, the Guardians bolt out with four runs off Bryan Hudson and Hagen Smith, the second and third pitchers in yet another bullpen game for the White Sox. The big rip in the inning for Cleveland is a bases-clearing triple by Jo Adell, his second three-bagger of the series. From there, the Guardians will not surrender their lead—pulling away over the final two innings with four additional runs. On the mound, the Guardians—also employing relievers from start to finish—strike out White Sox batters 19 times, setting an all-time postseason record for a nine-inning postseason game. Seven of those come from winning pitcher Foster Griffin, pitching 2.2 innings in relief of opener Daniel Espino. 

Thursday, October 8

The White Sox will have to wait for another time to clinch their first postseason series at home since 1906. The script for ALDS Game Four fairly resembles that of Game Three: An early Chicago lead in front of a big home crowd clad in black, followed by a loss of that lead by mid-game, before the Guardians pull away to a no-doubt victory. 

Cleveland’s 9-5 victory, the fourth in four games this series by the road team, is highlighted with all of the Guardians’ runs spread between the fifth and sixth innings—with six tallied in the latter frame alone. Jose Ramirez earns the cycle over a two-day period, collecting an RBI infield single and two-run homer—only his third since June 6—a day after hammering out a double and triple. On the mound, rookie Parker Messick proves faulty with two runs allowed on a pair of hits and four walks through 2.1 innings, but the Cleveland bullpen holds down the White Sox just enough to allow the Guardians to breathe with a late solid lead. 

The series moves back to Cleveland and a decisive Game Five on Saturday at Progressive Field, where the Guardians have lost six of their last eight postseason games. The winner takes on Tampa Bay in the ALCS, which begins Monday at St. Petersburg. 

After being quiet of late on the idea-pitching front as a work stoppage looms, Major League Baseball sells another thought that could be used as part of an agreement on a new Basic Agreement with the union: Reducing the regular season back to 154 games, expanding the second-round divisional series to a best-of-seven from its current best-of-five, and allowing top-seeded teams to choose the opponents they get to play. Financially, the idea is to sacrifice a small bit of the regular season games and gather in more postseason TV revenue without pushing the limits of baseball’s playing calendar, which currently starts in late March and ends as late as the first few days of November. The league is looking at 2029 to initiate this new scheme—when new TV deals are scheduled to take effect—and it’s contingent on the players accepting a salary cap, which they’re just never going to do. 

Saturday, October 10

The Guardians complete a remarkable three-game comeback to overcome the visiting White Sox in ALDS Game Three, using the strikeout and the most unlikely home run ever connected on by Cleveland star hitter Jose Ramirez. It’s the first time since 2017 that a team has come back from a 2-0 hole to win a best-of-five playoff series. 

In a 2-0 victory, the Guardians’ Gavin Williams allows a hit over 5.2 shutout innings with 12 strikeouts; the Cleveland bullpen will finish the shutout with an additional nine K’s, totaling 21 for the night. That not only breaks the postseason record established just three days earlier by Cleveland in Game Three, but it sets the all-time mark for any game—regular or postseason—in MLB history. 

Williams’ opposite number, Sean Burke, gets the call in a more traditional starting role as the White Sox finally chuck away the opener strategy, and he pitches well over five innings. But Ramirez ironically makes Burke pay on one of his best deliveries of the night—a two-strike knuckle curve in the fourth that Ramirez somehow golfs over the right-field wall for the game’s only scoring. According to Statcast, the pitch is struck just 0.74 feet above the ground—the lowest hit for a home run in the postseason since Statcast came into existence in 2008, and the lowest by any player this year, regular season included. The best chance for the White Sox to rebut comes in the sixth, when they load the bases on a single, walk and hit batter against Williams, leading to his departure with two outs; Eric Sabrowski comes in to put out the fire, striking out Munetaka Murakami to end the inning. 

The White Sox remain the only one of the active 30 MLB franchises to have never won a winner-take-all postseason game. They only played one previous such contest, against the Oakland A’s in the 2020 AL Wild Card Series. 

The 75 total strikeouts suffered by the White Sox are the third most in any postseason series—though the two that had more were both seven-game series. No team in regular season history has struck out as many times or more in any five-game stretch. 

Courtesy of statmaster Jessica Brand: The White Sox began the 2026 regular season striking out 20 times in a 14-2 loss to the Brewers and Jacob Misiorowski. They finish it with this 21-K defeat. 

For the first time since 2018, the top two seeds from each league survive to the third-round championship series. It’s also the second straight year that no wild card teams have reached the LCS, after at least one made it to the round in each of the previous six seasons.

Sunday, October 11

The Dodgers wear down Jacob Misiorowski—but like the Padres before them this postseason, they can’t do the same to the Brewers’ bullpen in NLCS Game One, being edged out in Milwaukee by a 2-1 margin. Misiorowski labors through 4.1 innings, racking up 94 pitches with three walks and 21 foul balls—but the NL Cy Coung Award favorite is tagged for just one run, as the Brewers turn three inning-ending double plays to keep the Dodgers from adding to the scoreboard. By comparison, Dodgers starter Tarik Skubal doesn’t have his pitch count get out of hand—but he allows two runs over five innings, just enough for the Brewers to prevail at the end. Brice Turang’s solo homer in the fourth is followed in the fifth by Luis Lara’s RBI single, bringing home the ultimate game-winning run. Brewers closer Trevor Megill makes things interesting in the ninth when he allows a pair of two-out walks, but induces a game-ending fly out from Mookie Betts to complete the save. 

The Brewers’ win snaps a seven-game losing streak against the Dodgers in postseason play, going back to the 2018 NLCS. The skid was one loss short of the all-time postseason mark by one team against another. 

Monday, October 12

The two-time defending champion Dodgers are down to five games to win four and rebound from a 2-0 NLCS hole against the Brewers—and they may have to take on that challenge without Shohei Ohtani. In Game Two at Milwaukee, the Brewers quickly wear down Los Angeles postseason ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto—forcing him out after 75 pitches and three runs allowed over just 2.2 innings—and peck away at an ineffective Dodgers bullpen, pulling away to a 7-4 victory. Brewers starter Logan Henderson has his own problems, lasting four innings and allowing four runs—two of those unearned, both of his own making with a pair of throwing errors. But the Milwaukee bullpen takes over for the final five innings and doesn’t allow a single baserunner—a MLB postseason first over such a span. That allows the Brewers to score their final four runs unanswered; William Contreras ties the game in the fifth with a solo home run, then gives the Brewers the lead with an RBI single one inning later. 

Over their first six playoff games, Milwaukee relievers have combined to allow just one run over 28.2 innings; they have thus far gained credit for all five Milwaukee October wins. 

The series moves on to Los Angeles for the next three games where the Dodgers are sure to get a mental boost from their fans. They’re going to need it; reports have manager Dave Roberts chatting with Ohtani over whether he’s still too beat up to play going forward. So far, the numbers are showing that he is; in 24 games since hitting three homers over a two-game span at mile-high Colorado in mid-August, the four-time MVP is batting .156 (14 hits in 90 at-bats) with three extra-base hits—no homers—and just a single RBI. He’s struck out 36 times. 

Working from a script that worked multiple times in their ALDS triumph over the White Sox, the Guardians come to Tampa Bay, trail the favored Rays early, fight back midway through, and pull away late to win ALCS Game One, 7-3. With RBI singles from Junior Caminero and Jonny DeLuca in the first inning, the Rays snag a 2-0 lead and hold it through the sixth as Tampa Bay starter Drew Rasmussen effectively ties down the Guardians. But after surrendering a solo homer to rookie Chase DeLauter in the sixth, Rasmussen serves up another to start the seventh to light-hitting catcher Patrick Bailey—who smashes the ball 436 feet for the longest homer of his career. With the game tied, Rasmussen departs—and the Tampa Bay bullpen collapses with five runs allowed over the final two innings. The last two of those tallies occurs after Jose Ramirez, after knocking out an RBI single, is initially ruled out while retreating to first to end the inning. But the call is overturned, allowing Ramirez to stay on base; he’ll eventually score on Jo Adell’s two-run double to cap the scoring. 

After two ALDS games against the Yankees sold out 40,000-seat Tropicana Field, ALCS Game One is played before 5,000 empty seats. This says two things: (1.), Guardians fans don’t travel as well as those for the Yankees, while (2.), some Rays fans don’t travel at all, preferring to shun the relatively short trip to St. Petersburg. 

Tuesday, October 13

Freddy Peralta turns up the heat and Jose Ramirez goes from hero to goat for a night as the Rays bounce back to take a 3-1 home win in ALCS Game Two, tying the series at a game apiece. Over six dazzling shutout innings, Peralta allows four hits and two walks while striking out six, relying more than ever on his fastball. And why not? The velocity on his heater is 2.6 MPH higher than his average, and one pitch is registered at 99.7—the fastest of his entire big-league career. Meanwhile, Ramirez suffers an all-around awful fourth inning in a postseason he’s otherwise thrived within. With the Rays batting, the all-Star third baseman is slow to cover third and keep Victor Mesa Jr. from advancing to the bag on a Chandler Simpson infield single. Ben Williamson next chops a hard bouncer at Ramirez—which goes right through his legs. The error allows two baserunners to score, and a third will be added on a Liam Hicks single. The three runs are all that the Rays will score, and all that they will need; they’re also all unearned in starter Parker Messick’s pitching log. The Guardians will get one run back on Chase DeLauter’s RBI double in the seventh, but otherwise threaten little to concede the game. 

Attendance at Tropicana Field is even lower than in Game One, with 8,000 unsold seats. 

Wednesday, October 14

The Dodgers’ chances of a third successive world title are on life support after a 6-2 home loss to the Brewers, giving Milwaukee a commanding 3-0 NLCS lead. Things begin ominously for the Dodgers when Jackson Chourio belts Blake Snell’s very first pitch of the game the opposite way for a leadoff home run. Snell quickly recovers and shuts down the Brewers through the sixth—striking out nine in the process—but he has an equal in Milwaukee starter Robert Gasser, who keeps the Dodgers off the scoreboard in his five innings of work. With Gasser removed to begin the sixth, Brewers reliever Abner Uribe cannot find the strike zone, and walks the bases full. When he finally delivers a pitch to the heart of the plate, Will Smith smashes it off the left-field wall for a double that gives the Dodgers a 2-1 advantage. Starting the seventh, a suddenly degraded Snell cannot hold the slim lead. He walks leadoff batter Andrew Vaughn, then faces Jake Bauers—who back in Game Two wore down Yoshinobu Yamamoto with a crucial 12-pitch at-bat. Remaining resilient, Bauers will work Snell for 10 pitches; on the 11th, he smacks a no-doubt-about-it, go-ahead home run into the right-field bleachers. Two pitches later, Garrett Mitchell will follow with his own homer to right, and the Brewers will never look back. The Dodgers can only net one hit over the final three innings, a sharp single up the middle from an ailing Shohei Ohtani—who also collects a walk, HBP and run while batting sixth in the lineup for the first time since 2020. 

The back-to-back homers by Bauers and Mitchell represent only the third time in postseason history that two left-handed batters have gone deep consecutively against a left-handed pitcher. It happened earlier this month by the Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper against Atlanta’s Dylan Lee, and before that way back in 1928 when Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig teed off on the Cardinals’ Bill Sherdel during the Yankees’ triumphant four-game World Series sweep. 

After being rebuffed (again) by Alex Cora, the Phillies are “settling” with Don Mattingly, who took over as manager after a 9-19 start and rallied the team to a second-place finish and postseason appearance. The 65-year-old Mattingly, whose son Preston just happens to be the Phillies’ general manager, is given a two-year deal to shed the interim label; financial terms are not revealed. 

Three Gold Gloves finalists for each position in each league are revealed, and it starkly shows an anti-San Diego Padres bias— whether by intention or not. 

Missing from the finalists is third baseman Manny Machado, who committed only three errors at the Hot Corner and led in numerous other metrics; he was snubbed in favor of the Cubs’ Alex Bregman, Miami’s Javier Sanoja and the Dodgers’ Max Muncy, who made a NL-high 15 errors during the season. Also missing is Fernando Tatis Jr., a previous winner of two Platinum Gloves representing the best of the best. A possible reason for Tatis’ absence is that his everyday appearance in one particular position was diminished—starting 104 games in right field and 50 at second base. Finally, third year center fielder Jackson Merrill, who exhibited excellent defense and robbed opposing hitters of four home runs this season, didn’t make the cut. Two other Padres did make the list of finalists: Catcher Freddy Fermin and first baseman Ty France. Overall, the Blue Jays and Cubs lead all teams in the number of finalists represented, with five each. 

Thursday, October 15

A year after being swept in the NLCS by the Dodgers, the Brewers return the favor with a 6-4 comeback victory at Los Angeles, winning their first pennant in 44 years and ending the two-time defending champions’ dream of a third straight world title. For the first three innings of Game Four, everything is going right for the Dodgers. Milwaukee rookie southpaw Shane Drohan, making his first appearance in 18 days, shows off the rust with only 12 strikes over 25 pitches before being promptly removed in the second inning for Dustin May. But the former Dodgers redhead is no better; on his watch, the Dodgers pile up four runs in the second, the last three on a 428-foot home run from Shohei Ohtani—his first round-tripper in just under two months—to give the Dodgers a 4-0 lead. Some teams would just pack it in and reserve their resources for the next night, like NBA teams often do in the postseason. But the Brewers are a completely different animal. They begin to claw back, first notching a pair of runs in the fourth on a Jake Bauers ground-rule double, then closing within a run on a David Hamilton single that scores Sal Frelick—who had walked and stole second. That knocks Dodgers starter Tyler Glasnow out of the game, but the Los Angeles bullpen fails to come to the rescue; a pair of walks (one intentional) loads the bases, and Bauers returns to the plate and walks himself; forcing in the tying run. 

In the sixth, the Brewers complete the comeback as Garrett Mitchell unloads on Tanner Scott for a 409-foot leadoff homer to give Milwaukee a 5-4 lead. Hamilton will add insurance in the ninth with a home run of his own (he hit only four in 121 games during the regular season), and Brewers reliever Aaron Ashby completes a scoreless, three-inning save by retiring the Dodgers in order for the final three outs.

This is the first-ever best-of-seven matchup of 100-win teams to result in a sweep. The Brewers are also the first team to trail in every game of a four-game playoff series sweep. 

The Brewers’ tenacity is reflected by stealing five bases during the NLCS, compared to none for the Dodgers. More surprisingly, the Brewers—who hit fewer home runs than any other NL team during the regular season—outhomer the Dodgers, 7-1. 

Milwaukee Pat Murphy, after the game: “(The Dodgers) may have a bunch of Hall of Famers, but we have a bunch of gamers. And the gamers won this week.” 

In an ALCS Game Three moved from early evening to midday to avoid approaching rain, the Guardians take the series lead with a 3-2 victory at Cleveland over the Rays. Gavin Williams strikes out nine batters over five innings, allowing Tampa Bay’s two runs (both scoring on a Chandler Simpson triple in the fourth), but picks up the win as Petey Halpin’s two-run homer in the bottom of the fifth gives the Guardians the lead for keeps. After Williams’ departure, four Cleveland relievers will combine to allow just one baserunner, via a Richie Palacios double in the seventh, over the final four innings; Cade Smith, making his 19th appearance over the Guardians’ last 21 playoff games, completes the contest with a perfect four-out save. 

Friday, October 16

ALCS Game Four at Cleveland will have to wait another day, as unexpectedly persistent rain keeps the tarps on the field and the players off it well past the scheduled 8:00 first pitch. Games Four and Five will thus be pushed back a day to Saturday and Sunday, with clear (yet cold) conditions expected; a travel off-day, initially scheduled for Sunday, will be erased with Games Six and Seven (if necessary) to be played as originally planned on Monday and Tuesday. “(The rain) never cleared out the way (MLB was) hoping it would,” said Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash…MLB and I think both clubs did everything they could to try and get it in.” 

The Athletic’s Jason Lloyd had a different take. “Major League Baseball knew it would rain here Friday night. Knew it Thursday morning. Noah would’ve looked at the radar and started cutting lumber…The Guardians’ weather people essentially told MLB ‘no chance’ this game gets played Friday night, and commissioner Rob Manfred said, ‘bet.’ So fans paid $70 to park, $30 on beer and nachos, and got hours of The Weather Channel, live, with no remote.” Lloyd also ridiculed the league for not moving Games Six and Seven back to Tuesday and Wednesday, even as it wouldn’t interfere with the start of the World Series on Friday. “Baseball’s flimsy defense is something like, ‘Hey, what do you want us to do?’ Travel plans are set, hotel reservations are made and it’s too late to change them. As if two teams flying charter can’t call the pilot and say, ‘Monday instead.’” 

Saturday, October 17

It’s all square in the ALCS as the Rays take a 7-3 decision over the Guardians at Cleveland in Game Four, evening the series at two games apiece. Nick Martinez concedes a first-inning run to the Guardians, but settles in with no further runs—nor hits—allowed over 5.1 total innings. He’ll be in line for a win he ultimately snags thanks to a searing, tie-breaking RBI double ripped down the left-field line by Junior Caminero in the sixth. The Rays will pad the lead to 5-1 in the seventh, the key hit being Jonathan Aranda’s second run-scoring single of the night, bringing home two runs—the second plating after the ball rolls under and past the glove of Cleveland right fielder Chase DeLauter. Yandy Diaz, having a quiet postseason by his standards, caps the scoring in the ninth with a two-run homer to right. 

The first-pitch temperature reading of 46 degrees is the coldest ever experienced by the Rays in 73 postseason games they’ve participated in. 

Sunday, October 18

Drew Rasmussen shows the Rays the way in ALCS Game Five, pitching seven more near-flawless innings to help Tampa Bay capture a 3-1 victory and a 3-2 series lead going back to St. Petersburg for Game Six. The Rays get the leadoff runner on base in each of their first three innings—and each of them score, giving Rasmussen all the support he’ll need. The Rays’ top pitcher allows just a run on four hits with six strikeouts; in 15 starts since the All-Star break, he’s 11-0 with a 1.73 ERA and .185 opposing batting average. Taking the loss is Cleveland rookie southpaw Parker Messick, who lasts just two innings; he’s failed to register five frames in three of his four postseason starts, after finishing short of five just twice during the regular season. 

Monday, October 19

The Tampa Bay Rays secure their third pennant in franchise history, climbing back from an early 2-1 series deficit to win their final three games and capture the flag with a 7-3 win at St. Petersburg over the Guardians. As with Drew Rasmussen in Game Five, Rays starter Freddy Peralta continues his fine recent form by allowing a run on five hits through 5.1 innings to pick up his second ALCS win and series MVP. After Peralta’s departure, Junior Caminero clangs the foul pole with a two-run homer to give Tampa Bay a 5-1 lead in the seventh; Caminero does as much celebration as trotting around the bases, taking nearly 40 seconds to complete the circuit. Looking anything but deflated by Caminero’s homer, the Guardians mount their most serious chance for a game-changing rally in the eighth. They plate two runs and load the bases with two outs on a pair of walks and a hit batter courtesy of Rays reliever Ian Seymour. He’s replaced by Kevin Kelly, who ends the Cleveland threat with a strikeout of Bryan Rocchio. The Rays will provide the knockout punch a half-inning later in déjà vu fashion, as Yandy Diaz caps the scoring on a two-run homer—just as he did in Game Four at Cleveland, which the Rays also won by the same score.  

Peralta extends a run of excellent pitching in which he’s gone 7-0 over his last 10 appearances (nine of them starts) with a terrific 0.89 ERA. He will pair of with the equally hot Rasmussen against the team they both once played for—the Milwaukee Brewers—in the World Series that begins on October 23. 

The Rays and Guardians finish the series all but statistically even, but two deeper numbers stand out in the Rays favor. Tampa Bay is 8-for-8 in stolen base attempts, while the Guardians manage just three swipes in six attempts; and the Rays are far more effective with runners in scoring position (batting .311) than the Guardians (.194). 

The Rays-Brewers World Series, starting Friday, will be only the second one played over the last 106 years in which both teams are seeking their first-ever world title. The other such occurrence came in 1980 when the Phillies and Royals faced off. 

In defeat, the Guardians extend their World Series drought to 78 years—the longest active streak among all MLB teams. During this winless span, they’ve lost three World Series and four championship series. 

Multiple reports say that the Yankees are sticking with Aaron Boone for the 2027 season, the final year of his current contract. Although Boone has led the team to winning records in each of his nine seasons at New York, with eight playoff appearances and the 2024 AL pennant, his failure to win it all has led to rumor that the Yankees would not retain him. 

The Athletics are bringing in Boston assistant GM Taylor Smith as their new president of baseball operations, making the 31-year-old the youngest to be employed in that position through all of baseball. Smith is hardly a newbie; before his two years with the Red Sox, he spent seven seasons working his way up the front-office pole in Tampa Bay. Thus, not surprisingly, Smith is said to be all in on the analytics side of the game. 

Tuesday, October 20

The success this past season of first-year Nippon Professional Baseball expatriates Munetaka Murakami and Kazuma Okamoto in MLB is continuing to encourage others to jump across the Pacific. Teruaki Soto, who earned the triple crown of hitting for the Hanshin Tigers in the six-team Central League this past season, is making himself available to MLB teams. The 27-year-old third baseman batted .306 with 39 homers and 106 RBIs for the 2026 Tigers; in six seasons at the top level, Soto has belted 167 homers. 

Wednesday, October 21

Kurt Suzuki is one (year), 100 (losses) and done in Anaheim as the Angels’ manager, as the team’s new ownership group declines his 2027 option. However, Suzuki will return to the front office to serve as a special assistant, as he did before being hired to the dugout this past season. Under Suzuki’s watch, the Angels suffered their first-ever 100-loss campaign in their 66-year history. The team was especially weighed down by an impotent offense that was dead last in the majors with a .679 OPS, and was second-to-last in home runs and runs scored. 

Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner is increasingly staking his claim as the anti-Steinbrenner, staying the course with hjs top baseball people as opposed to his late father George—who made a habit of impatiently firing his managers and execs. After giving Aaron Boone two more years to manage the club from the dugout, Steinbrenner extends general manager Brian Cashman, who with 29 years in that capacity at New York is the longest-running such exec within MLB—and the longest in Yankees franchise history. Terms of the extension are not revealed, but he was making $5 million annually over the past five seasons. Some fans in the 

Bronx may bristle at the Yankees’ championship drought, which has now reached 17 seasons. But Steinbrenner appreciates that both Cashman and Boone oversee a consistent contender that remains part of the October conversation every year. 

Thursday, October 22

Todd Benzinger, a first baseman/outfielder who played for nine seasons—collecting a ring as a member of the 1990 Reds—passes away at the age of 63. A member of five different teams over his career, Benzinger was at his most productive for the 1989 Reds, setting personal bests with 17 home runs and 76 RBIs. In the Reds’ shocking sweep of the heavily favored Oakland A’s in the 1990 World Series, Benzinger collected two hits in 11 at-bats. 

Friday, October 23

After an eight-day layoff, the Brewers show to be more rested than rusted as they take Game One of the 2026 World Series over the Rays at Milwaukee, 3-2. It’s a fine first inning for the Brewers; Jacob Misiorowski, not surprisingly, resets the record for the fastest velocity in a World Series game with a 103.5 MPH delivery on his very first pitch, escaping a first-inning jam on Junior Caminero’s line out-turned-double play. In the bottom of the first, the Brewers notch two runs, the first on an RBI triple off the bat of Christian Yelich, the 14-year veteran making his first appearance in the Fall Classic. The Brewers pad their lead in the seventh on Jackson Chourio’s two-out RBI single. That will prove to be important; in the ninth, Milwaukee closer Trevor Megill loads the bases with one out, but appears to get out of it with a game-ending double play grounded into by Liam Hicks. While the Brewers celebrate, the Rays challenge that shortstop Cooper Pratt took his foot off the second-base bag before receiving a throw from Brice Turang; reviews confirm that he indeed did. With a run scoring on the play—and with the tying and go-ahead runs planted at third and second—the Brewers get back on the field and, in the fog of smoke from premature postgame fireworks, Megill strikes out Jonny DeLuca to, this time definitely, wrap up the win. 

Misiorowski will last five innings, allowing a run on four hits; of his 78 pitches, 38 are clocked at 100+, setting another Series game mark. Yet he only strikes out three. 

The most anticipated 1v1 matchup in Game One pairs Misiorowski, wielding the year’s meanest fastball, against Caminero—who led the majors this past season in average exit velocity. A fourth inning at-bat between the two doesn’t disappoint; Caminero smokes a lined double to center measured at 112.7 MPH—the hardest hit ball by anyone so far this postseason. 

After going 11-for-11 in stolen base attempts through their first two postseason series, Rays baserunners are successful on only two of four tries against Brewers catcher William Contreras. With a couple of hits on offense, capping the scoring with an RBI single in the first, Contreras is the first catcher with a pair of hits and stolen base punchouts each in a World Series game since the Yankees’ Joe Girardi in 1999. 

Saturday, October 24

The Brewers turn up the comeback magic and take World Series Game Two over the Rays at Milwaukee, 5-4 taking a 2-0 lead in the series with the next three games set for St. Petersburg. The Rays plate all four of their runs before the Brewers come to bat, notching three earned and one unearned off Milwaukee starter Logan Henderson—who for the second time this postseason gives up four runs after having never allowed more than three in 23 career regular season outings. But the Brewers get two of those runs back in the bottom half of the first against Tampa Bay starter Drew Rasmussen, who ultimately has by far his worst start of this postseason; he’s removed after 3.2 innings, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks. It could be worse for Rasmussen’s line score; he leaves the bases loaded, and none of them score as reliever Cam Booser puts out the fire and ends the inning with the Rays still ahead, 4-3. Two innings later, a Rays rally ends empty-handed as, with two outs and catcher Liam Hicks on second, Victor Mesa Jr. knocks a soft single to short left field that’s quickly fielded by Jackson Chourio. Incredulously, Hicks is waived around third by Tampa Bay third base coach Brady Williams—and Chourio, despite a weak throw, easily nails Hicks at the plate. 

It doesn’t take long for the Brewers to respond. Sal Frelick, leading off the sixth and with just four home runs over 409 plate appearances (including postseason) this year, launches a deep fly that clears the center-field wall for a game-tying homer. The Brewers then take the lead in the seventh with their fifth unanswered run, as rookie Cooper Pratt’s single brings home Brice Turang. 

As in Game One, the Rays feverishly attempt to avoid the loss in the ninth. Aaron Ashby, pitching his second inning of relief for the Brewers, serves up a leadoff double to Jonny DeLuca; after retiring the next two batters, Yandy Diaz—who’s tough as they’ve come this season in the clutch—comes to bat, but Brewers manager Pat Murphy shoves the analytics and sticks with the left-handed Ashby against the right-handed Diaz, even as right-handed closer Trevor Megill is ready in the bullpen. After falling behind in the count at 3-1, Ashby sneaks in a called strike two, then gets strike three when Diaz attempts, in vain, to check his swing. But did Diaz actually check it? You make the call.

This is the first time since 1925 that a road team has squandered a four-run lead in a World Series game. That was the deciding game of the Fall Classic, with the Washington Senators blowing their advantage over the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

Despite Henderson’s subpar outing, the Brewers are 12-0 when he starts at home. 

Through 10 postseason games this year, the Brewers’ bullpen has won eight games and posted a 1.24 ERA with eight saves; both the win and saves totals tie postseason records. Ashby, in particular, has pitched an unprecedented six straight postseason games with five or more outs and no runs allowed. 

Thursday, October 25

In an article written three days ago by ESPN’s Jesse Rogers on the looming work stoppage, we were stopped by one line: “The league says it is pushing for a (salary) cap because that is what the fans desire.” 

Really, they do? 

The Athletic’s Evan Drelich wrote a story on the same topic that same day, and if the reader’s comments at the end of the story are any indication, the league hasn’t been doing its homework. First comment: “All happening because extremely wealthy owners decided to cheap out and make even more (money).” Second commenter: “It’s the owners that want to jeopardize this sport.” Third commenter: “Owners want a salary cap to enhance the value of their franchises (and) to limit player salaries. Competitive balance is bulls**t (to them).” And so on it went. In search of something more scientific, we looked it up. Back in February, The Athletic did an open poll in which over 14,000 responded; 68% of them did support the idea of a cap—so long as it came with a floor that MLB payrolls could not go below. But 57% of that same group said that owners bear the responsibility of the disparity in payroll between small market teams and big market teams. 

Commissioner Rob Manfred is doing his best to steer public opinion in his favor, and perhaps he’s right that most fans—hardcore and casual alike—would be fine seeing the owners and players agree on a salary cap. (Spoiler: One side will not stand up and say to the other side, “Yeah, you’re right.” So it ain’t going to happen.) Who ultimately will the fans side with? This poll says this, and the commenters say that. Just remember: We’re at the very beginning of all this. And the end may be further away than we hope.  

Monday, October 26

It’s a rout for the Brewers in World Series Game Three. Could a sweep be next? Against the Rays at St. Petersburg before a crowd of 40,388—seemingly half of which is rooting for the visiting side—the Rays notch two early runs against former Brewers ace Freddy Peralta, in advance of a fifth-inning explosion that might serve as the defining final dagger thrust into the Rays’ championship aspirations. With two outs and a pair of runners on base—and no runs yet plated—William Contreras bounces a grounder to Tampa Bay third baseman Junior Caminero, whose only play is at second to force Christian Yelich for the final out. But the Brewers want to take a lot at the call and ask for a review; turns out, Yelich beats the throw to the bag, extending the inning. What an extension it becomes; the next six batters reach base via a hit—three of them doubles—and eight runs score after the replay overturn, bolting the Brewers out to a massive 10-0 advantage. The seven straight hits and eight two-out runs break existing Fall Classic records. 

Meanwhile on the mound, the Brewers’ Robert Gasser faces the minimum through six innings of shutout work, allowing a hit and walk (both erased, on a caught stealing and double play); he’s the first Milwaukee starting pitcher this postseason to both pitch past the fifth and finish the sixth. The Brewers’ bullpen takes over from there and, enhancing the Brewers’ feel-good mood on the evening, Brandon Woodruff—the longest-tenured active Brewer—takes the mound in the ninth for his first appearance since the Fourth of July. He allows two of the Rays’ three hits and their only run on a Yandy Diaz double, but still gains cheers from the sizeable contingent of Milwaukee fans as the Brewers wrap up a 10-1 victory—giving them a dominant 3-0 lead in the series. 

Jackson Chourio has four hits—two of them during the Brewers’ eight-run sixth—and a stolen base, pushing his World Series totals through three games to eight hits and three steals. No player has ever had such a high combination through the first three games of the Fall Classic. 

The last-place New York Mets can claim one award-winning representative in 2026, as shortstop Francisco Lindor receives this year’s distinguished Roberto Clemente Award for his efforts in giving to the community. Like Clemente, Lindor is a native of Puerto Rico; he is the fifth such player to receive the honor, and the first since Yadier Molina in 2018. 

Tuesday, October 27

The Rays stay alive by the skin of their teeth, snaring World Series Game Four in come-from-behind fashion with a 12-inning, 4-3 victory over the Brewers at St. Petersburg. They become only the fourth of 25 Fall Classic teams to avoid a sweep with a win in an elimination game; for the Brewers, it’s only the second loss they’ve suffered in the past five weeks. 

After run-scoring doubles by the Rays’ Chandler Simpson and Brewers’ Cooper Pratt give both teams their initial runs early on, the Rays take a 2-1 lead on third baseman David Hamilton’s throwing error in the fourth, rushed past first base after an unsuccessful tag attempt on Simpson. Hamilton will atone for the gaffe the next inning when he launches a game-tying home run on what will be the last pitch thrown by Tampa Bay starter Griffin Jax. It’s Hamilton’s second postseason homer, after hitting four over 387 plate appearances during the regular season. After Hamilton’s blast, the bullpens take over and effectively shut down the opposing side through the 11th inning. Highlighting the reliever reel is Milwaukee’s Aaron Ashby, who retires all seven batters he faces and sets a record by not allowing a run through his first 18 career postseason innings. 

In the 12th, Cooper Pratt unlocks the tie with his fourth hit of the game, clearing the left-field fence with a solo homer; he’s the first rookie in World Series history to go deep in extra innings. Three outs away from their first-ever world title, the Brewers immediately fumble away the first out when Joey Ortiz fields a Junior Caminero grounder and throws it wildly past first base. Despite coming up lame on the run down the line, Caminero stays in and charges to third on Liam Hicks’ single against the Brewers’ new pitcher Shane Drohan (replacing Antonio Senzatela). It’s the first of four straight singles allowed by Drohan; Jonny Deluca will bring home Cedric Mullins (running for Caminero), Simpson will line a shot to center to load the bases, and Ben Williamson—the last available position player left on the Rays’ bench—chops Drohan’s first offering high over a drawn-in Milwaukee infield, bringing home the winning run. 

Despite the loss, the Brewers’ Jackson Chourio knocks out two more hits to total 10 through the series’ first four games; the only other player to amass that many hits through four Fall Classic games is Babe Ruth, who did it during the Yankees’ 1928 sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals. 

Despite an obvious limp as he walks off the field in the 12th, Caminero says he’ll be available for Game Five. 

Wednesday, October 28

After 58 years, it is finally accomplished for the Milwaukee Brewers as they are champions of baseball for the first time after a 4-1 Game Five victory over the Tampa Bay Rays before a mostly pro-Milwaukee crowd at sold-out Tropicana Field. 

Jacob Misiorowski, pitching on four days’ rest for only the fifth time this season, is sharp as he shuts down the Rays on just two hits and a walk through 5.2 shutout innings; he’s forced to leave before the end of the sixth as his right calf cramps up—possibly due to a slippery clay base on the mound which results in his planting (right) foot to sliding continuously forward. Though the Miz throws 51 of his 86 pitches at or over 100 MPH, he only strikes out two batters. 

Opposing Misiorowski is Drew Rasmussen, getting the start for the Rays on three days’ rest. The former Milwaukee pitcher does well over four innings and 48 pitches, but allows the game’s first run when Cooper Pratt knocks out an RBI single in the second inning. Pratt will later score the Brewers’ second run in the fifth, after Rasmussen’s departure, on a one-out single—his sixth straight hit to set a World Series rookie mark. One inning later, Pratt will bring home the Brewers’ final run of the night on a sac fly. The Rays will plate their lone run in the ninth on a Chandler Simpson double against Brewers closer Trevor Megill—but it’s too little, too late for the Rays. Richie Palacios will next ground out to second baseman Brice Turang to cement the world title for Milwaukee. 

The Series MVP goes to Brewers catcher William Contreras, who bats .381 (8-for-21) with four RBIs while, behind the plate, gunning down four of nine would-be Rays basestealers and getting 11 of 13 ABS challenges overturned in the Brewers favor. Along with Milwaukee teammates Jackson Chourio and Antonio Senzatela, Contreras ends the year being part of two championship squads: The Brewers, and the Venezuelan World Baseball Classic team. 

The Brewers’ bullpen posts a 1.38 ERA over 65 innings in the 2026 postseason; opposing teams hit .173 against the relievers. 

The four total home runs between both teams in the World Series are the fewest since Kansas City and St. Louis also grouped together for four in their seven-game Fall Classic in 1985, won by the Royals. 

The Brewers’ triumph leaves four current MLB teams without a World Series trophy: Seattle, San Diego, Colorado…and the Rays. (The Mariners are the only franchise that has yet to even reach the Fall Classic.) 

Way-too-early prediction for next year: Opening Day will take place sometime in early June. 

Thursday, October 29

Will the champion Brewers go the way of the 1994 Montreal Expos and be broken up by the economics of the game? For those trying to recall, the Expos were the hottest and most talented team 32 years ago, but their chance to shine in October was denied by the crippling work stoppage that ended the season early—canceling the regular season’s final two months and the entire postseason to follow. Among Montreal’s top players were two future Hall of Famers (Pedro Martinez and Larry Walker), speedster Marquis Grissom, outfielder Moises Alou and closer John Wetteland. They were all 27 years of age except Martinez, who was still just 22. 

Building a top-notch club like the 1994 Expos was the easy part; the hard part, especially for this budget-conscious organization, was retaining its star players as free agency beckoned. Sure enough, the following year, Walker, Wetteland and Grissom would be with new clubs, two of them winning World Series within the next couple of seasons (Grissom with the 1995 Braves, Wetteland with the 1996 Yankees); Alou was gone via free agency after 1996, signing with the Florida Marlins—who won it all in 1997 before performing their own roster gutting; and Martinez would be traded to Boston after 1997, winning four ERA titles, two Cy Young Awards and his own World Series ring with the 2004 Red Sox. 

Which brings us back to Milwaukee, MLB’s smallest market. The Brewers, along with the low-payroll Rays who they defeated in the World Series, proved that the league’s relatively needy ballclubs can thrive in the present-day environment. Commissioner Rob Manfred, of course, sees it differently—citing the Brewers as the first small-market team to win the World Series in 11 years as the reason a salary cap needs to be implemented and competitive balance restored. 

So, when baseball resumes play sometime next June (that’s our guess), and assuming a salary cap remains a concept and not reality, can the Brewers retain the core of their championship roster? Let’s look at the players who remain under team control. Ace Jacob Misoroswki, evolving pitcher Logan Henderson, second baseman Brice Turang, outfielders Sal Frelick and Garrett Mitchell, closer Trevor Megill and reliever Abner Uribe all fit into that category. The Brewers hold a 2027 option on catcher and World Series MVP William Contreras worth $15 million; they’d be nuts not only to decline it, but to not offer him an extension. Jackson Chourio, fellow outfielder Luis Lara and infielder Cooper Pratt are all under contract through the early 2030s after signing early extensions. Veteran Christian Yelich and reliever Aaron Ashby have contracts lasting through the rest of this decade. 

On paper, it looks like this roster should hold together for at least a few more years. But there will be arbitration hearings and increased salary as existing contracts progress, raising payroll—perhaps significantly, even if they don’t bring anyone else in through free agency. Then it becomes a question of whether the Brewers will assume a small-minded attitude and, like the 1994 Expos before them, break up the roster to ensure financial stability. But why do that when you draw nearly three million fans a year to your ballpark? Okay, so ticket revenue by itself aren’t a sole measure of a team’s financial standing, what with regional TV deals, real estate side gigs and corporate sponsorships thrown into the mix. Yes, a salary cap could eliminate the dog-eat-dog culture of big-market, big-payroll teams taking emerging high-priced talent off the hands of small-market, small-payroll clubs. Or—hey, here’s a thought, Mr. Commissioner—instead of a salary cap, why not develop a healthy broadcast revenue sharing scheme not unlike that of the NFL? Right, Rob? Rob? Hello? 

Friday, October 30

Schools are closed and the streets are jammed with up with nearly half a million Milwaukee-area residents who come to celebrate the world champion Brewers, two days after winning their first-ever World Series. Joining the players are owner Mark Attanasio, numerous team employees from front office execs to the grounds crew, and past team legends such as Robin Yount, Paul Molitor and Rollie Fingers. Even the racing sausage mascots stroll the parade route, which passes by a large mural of Bob Uecker, the late Brewers broadcaster. 

Milwaukee is a beer town, of course, so it’s not out of character to see members of the team imbibing a little bit—or more. Outfielder Sal Frelick is seldom seen without a beer can in his hand, and when the parade ends at Henry Maier Festival Park, hitting coach (and recent no-neck slugger) Daniel Vogelbach does a painfully inebriated vocal of Fountains of Wayne’s Stacy’s Mom to a large audience. 

With very little surprise, Mets infielder Bo Bichette will not opt out of his current three-year deal and is exercising his $42 million option for the 2027 season. After a comeback campaign in his last year at Toronto in 2025, Bichette signed as a free agent with the Mets and had a blasé year by his standards, batting .260 with 18 home runs, 78 RBIs and a hardly-wowing .702 OPS; at least he stayed healthy, playing a career-high 160 games. Bichette can opt again after next season or return for another $42 million in 2028. 

Somewhat surprisingly, the typically penurious Miami Marlins decline to exercise their $21 million option on pitcher Sandy Alcantara for 2027. The long-time ace and former Cy Young winner enjoyed a mostly agreeable 2026 campaign with a 13-11 record and 3.87 ERA over a major league-leading 214 innings; he even had time to save three games late in the season. 

Also somewhat surprisingly, the AL champion Rays decline their end of a mutual option on pitcher Nick Martinez, who threw solidly this past year with a 15-6 record and 3.10 ERA; he would have been paid $20 million in 2027, but he’ll get a $4 million buyout instead. Interestingly, Drew Rasmussen—Tampa Bay’s all-time leader in ERA and winning percentage among pitchers with 500 innings—has a 2027 club option also for $20 million; the Rays have not announced whether they intend to enact it, or let him go as well. (Rasmussen would only get a $550,000 buyout.) 

Many other players have their options declined either by themselves and/or by their incumbent teams. That includes pitcher Michael King, who thinks he can do better than the $28 million he’s contracted for next year, waiving his option with the Padres and becoming a free agent; Matthew Boyd, who rejects a $15 million salary with the Chicago Cubs; Josh Bell, the nomadic switch-hitting slugger who’ll be looking for his eighth team in six years after the Twins say no to his $10 million salary for next year; Joe Ryan, the six-year pitcher and All-Star over the last two years, also out the door in Minnesota instead of earning $13 million in 2027; and Carlos Estevez, who saved an MLB-leading 42 games in 2025, but made just one appearance this past year before undergoing season-ending rotator cuff surgery. He’s denied a $13 million option by Kansas City. 

Saturday, October 31

The Rays apparently can afford one $20 million pitcher, not two. A day after declining Nick Martinez’s $20 million option for 2027, they pick up another on Drew Rasmussen. Both had outstanding campaigns with Tampa Bay in 2027, but Rasmussen will likely get more Cy Young Award votes after finishing with a 16-5 record and 2.67 ERA this past year. In 133 career appearances with the Rays, Rasmussen is 45-21 with a 2.71 ERA.