After getting started, the Milwaukee Brewers’ offense showed no signs of slowing down. The MLB club moved within one win of capturing their first-ever World Series title, a championship they’ve been chasing for 57 years.
The Brewers overwhelmed the Tampa Bay Rays with a 10-1 victory in Game 3 of the World Series (best-of-seven) at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, on the 27th (Korean time). Following narrow wins in Games 1 (3-2) and 2 (5-4) at home, Milwaukee took control to complete a three-game winning streak. This extended their postseason winning streak to eight straight games since their NLDS Game 4 triumph over the San Diego Padres. Established in 1969, the Brewers have never won baseball’s ultimate prize, but they now stand poised to claim their first title since finishing as runners-up in 1982.
With a 2-0 lead in the top of the fifth inning, the Brewers loaded the bases after two outs. Jackson Churio singled with one out, but Jake Bauer struck out, leaving runners on base. The Brewers then disrupted the Rays’ defense. Churio stole second, and Christian Yelich drew a walk, creating a 2-1-2 situation.
William Contreras hit a ground ball to third base. Rays third baseman Junior Camarena threw to second instead of first, and Yelich was initially called out. However, the Brewers challenged the call via video review, which reversed the decision, confirming that Yelich’s foot touched the base before the catch. The bases remained loaded with two outs, prompting the Rays to replace starter Freddy Peralta with left-hander Cam Buzzard.
The Brewers’ momentum surged. Bryce Turang drove in two runs with a ground-rule double, extending the lead to 4-0. Garrett Mitchell followed with an RBI single. Cooper Pratt delivered a two-run double, and Sal Frelick added another RBI double off the wall, pushing the score to 8-0.
Even after the Rays brought in Cool Selzer to replace Buzzard, the Brewers kept attacking. David Hamilton recorded an RBI single, and Churio delivered a go-ahead two-run double in his next at-bat, making it 10-0. The Brewers recorded seven consecutive hits after the two-out mark in the fifth inning, scoring eight runs in total. Twelve batters came to the plate before Bauer’s flyout ended the historic rally.
Scoring eight runs after two outs in a single inning set a new World Series record. It also ranks as the second-highest run total in such a scenario in postseason history. The sequence of seven straight hits by batters marked the first time this feat has occurred in postseason play.
Churio led the charge. Batting leadoff and playing left field, he went 4-for-5 with one RBI and two runs scored. His single in the third inning helped set up the first run, and in the fifth, his hit, stolen base, and double sparked the eight-run surge. Contreras, Turang (both with three hits), and Yelich also played key roles in the balanced offensive effort. All nine Brewers starters collected hits.
Left-handed pitcher Robert Gasser shined on the mound, allowing only a single hit, one walk, and striking out three batters over six innings in just 75 pitches. He delivered under pressure during the postseason, limiting opponents to a single run across 15 innings spanning the NLDS, Championship Series, and World Series. Antonio Senzatela tossed two scoreless innings, while Brandon Woodruff gave up one run in his inning of work.
The Rays’ difficulties started with Peralta, their former star. After eight seasons with the Brewers, he joined the Rays through a trade with the New York Mets this season and was named ALCS MVP after defeating the Cleveland Guardians. Facing his former team, he lasted 4⅔ innings, yielding seven hits, three walks, and five runs.
Buzzard and Selzer combined for 4⅔ innings, surrendering eight hits and five runs. Garrett Cleavinger, Tyler Wells, and Steven Mats each recorded scoreless outings. The Rays managed their sole run in the bottom of the ninth, sparked by Yandy Díaz’s two-out RBI single with a runner on second base.
Founded in 1998, the Rays have fallen short in the World Series in both 2008 and 2020. This year, they sought their first championship after returning to the Series for the first time in six years, but now stand at risk of losing the title at home in Games 4 and 5.
A “reverse sweep”—coming back to win four games in a row after losing the first three in a best-of-seven series—has happened only once in MLB history. In 2004, the Boston Red Sox overcame a 3-0 deficit against the New York Yankees in the ALCS and ultimately claimed the World Series. However, no team has ever accomplished a reverse sweep in the World Series itself.
The Brewers concluded the regular season with a 103-59 record, the top mark in MLB. They swept the Los Angeles Dodgers, who were chasing a third consecutive World Series title, in the Championship Series. Now just one victory away from their first championship, the Brewers will take on the Rays again at the same venue on the 28th at 9:08 a.m. for Game 4.
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