The Brewers won their first World Series title, beating the Rays in five games. William Contreras was MVP.
The Milwaukee Brewers are World Series champions for the first time, beating the Tampa Bay Rays 4-1 in Game 5 on Wednesday night at Tropicana Field to win the series 4-1 and claim the franchise’s first title in its 57-season history.
Starter Jacob Misiorowski set the tone for the Brewers, giving up little contact against a Rays lineup that missed on only nine of its 41 swings. Cooper Pratt drove in Brice Turang in the second inning, and David Hamilton added a run with a single in the fifth. In the sixth, William Contreras doubled to score Christian Yelich, who had been hit by a pitch, and Pratt’s sacrifice fly made it 4-0. The Rays scored in the ninth when Liam Hicks doubled and Chandler Simpson drove him in with a two-out double. Trevor Megill earned a six-out save, ending the game when Richie Palacios grounded out to second.
Contreras, the Brewers’ catcher, was named World Series MVP after batting .381 with four RBIs. He is the eighth catcher to win the award, a three-time All-Star and a two-time Silver Slugger winner. Pratt had the game-winning hit in Game 2 and four hits in Game 4, which the Rays won on a walk-off. Milwaukee swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series to reach the Series.
The Brewers, who lost the 1982 World Series to the St. Louis Cardinals, ended a wait of nearly six decades. The Rays still have not won a World Series. Yahoo Sports noted that it is not clear when the next major league game will be played, as baseball’s labor situation looms.
Information for this report was provided by CNN, CBS Sports, MLB.com, Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report.