Brewers claim first title after 58 years

Jacob Misiorowski threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings to lead the Milwaukee Brewers to a 4-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday night. The win at Tropicana Field ended the World Series and granted the smallest market in Major League Baseball its first championship. Fans in the Brew-Crew section behind the dugout erupted as the final out was recorded.

The franchise began as the Seattle Pilots in 1969 and moved to Milwaukee the following year. This marks the 58th season for the team. Their only previous World Series appearance occurred in 1982. In that instance, the Brewers blew a 3-1 lead in the sixth inning of Game 7. They lost to the St. Louis Cardinals by a score of 6-3.

Manager Pat Murphy guided the team through the playoffs. The 67-year-old veteran survived a heart attack in 2020. He won the National League Manager of the Year award in 2024 and 2025. His squad went 11-2 in the postseason. This run included seven comeback wins and a sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS.

Misiorowski pitched on four days of rest. He threw 86 pitches, 58 of which were strikes. He opened the game with 12 consecutive four-seam fastballs. His velocity ranged between 100.9 and 103 mph. He recorded two strikeouts. He left the mound due to a right calf cramp. He received a standing ovation from the crowd.

Rookie Cooper Pratt provided the offensive spark. He set a Series rookie record with six consecutive hits. Jackson Chourio set a five-game Series record with 11 hits. Pratt singled off Drew Rasmussen in the second inning to give Milwaukee a 1-0 lead. He scored on a David Hamilton single in the fifth. William Contreras hit an RBI double in the sixth. Pratt followed with a sacrifice fly to extend the lead to 4-0.

The Rays relied on small ball as well. The teams combined for four home runs. Milwaukee hit three of those. The Brewers scored a major league-low 32.1% of their runs on home runs. Tampa Bay was second-lowest at 34.4%, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. This efficiency defined both rosters during the series.

The Rays fell to 0-3 in the World Series. They had previously lost in 2008 and 2020. Only the Brooklyn Dodgers and Detroit Tigers have lost their first three Series appearances. Tampa Bay became the fifth team to fall behind 3-0 and lose in Game 5. Twenty-one of the 26 teams to fall behind 3-0 were swept.

The series concluded with the Brewers leading the majors in regular-season wins with 103. They ranked 19th in payroll as of Aug. 31. Tampa Bay ranked 25th. This was the first World Series since 1991 between teams in the bottom half of payrolls. The victory comes as owners push for a salary cap. A management lockout is likely to start Dec. 2.

Trevor Megill closed the game. He allowed an RBI double to Chandler Simpson with two outs in the ninth. He retired Richie Palacios on a grounder to second base. He threw his arms in the air before teammates mobbed him near the mound. The celebration marked the end of a long wait for Milwaukee baseball fans.