After a long regular season, the World Series is officially upon us, and while there's two small market teams competing, this is expected to be one of the best Fall Classic's in recent memory. That is because both the No. 1 seed in the American League and National League do battle, and unsurprisingly, things got started with superstar right-hander Jacob Misiorowski.
It didn't take long for the Milwaukee Brewers ace to light up the radar gun either, as social media was buzzing as a result of his first 10 pitches coming in at over 100 miles per hour, with the first at 103.5 being the fastest pitch ever thrown in the World Series.
It's effective too, as he worked around two singles and forced Junior Caminero to line into a double play, escaping the first inning with a zero on the board in front of an absolutely red-hot crowd in Milwaukee.
Then came the bottom of the first inning, and the team got started on the right foot at the plate as well, with Christian Yelich following a Jackson Chourio single with a run scoring triple, bringing home their leadoff hitter to get on the board immediately.
It didn't stop there however, as next up to the plate was William Contreras, and with one out, he lined a ball to shortstop that Taylor Walls couldn't haul in, with the Brewers taking a 2-0 lead early in front of a crowd that had been whipped into a frenzy.
Tampa Bay, as we expected were not overawed by the moment, and as the game went on, despite Misiorowski's dominance, the team were able to hang tough behind Nick Martinez, who exited the game after 5.0 innings of fantastic work following the first inning.
Then, the offense came along for the Rays, with a double to Junior Caminero taking Jonathan Aranda to third base, and when the team needed it, catcher Liam Hicks stepped up, delivering an RBI groundout to get the Rays on the board for the first time in this World Series. That cut the lead to just 2-1, and with Misiorowski also departing after five innings of work, this remained anyone's game as the bullpen for both teams were emptied.
The success wasn't limited to the plate though, as the team made a brilliant play on the relay, cutting down David Hamilton at the plate as he tried to stretch out a triple to spark the Brewers offense.
This was a game full of plays on the base paths, and unfortunately for Tampa Bay, they were cut down several times in their own right, as William Contreras, on top of his RBI single in the first inning has thrown out not one, but two Rays base runners, with the biggest being in the top of the sixth with the key double play to end the inning.
From this point on, it was all about the bullpen, with both teams featuring top tier groups that have helped them dominate en route to the World Series. For the Brewers, it was Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby and Trevor Megill, and for the Rays, it was all about the depth and experience through Steven Matz, with the game staying tight at 2-1 for several innings in a row.
However, from the moment that the Rays decided to remove the veteran left-hander, the Brewers took advantage, with Chourio once again at the center of the success, lacing a ground ball past first base off Kevin Kelly to double Milwaukee's lead to 3-1.
Christian Yelich once again had the opportunity to put the team up by more than two and blow the game wide open, and while he laced a ball, it was smothered at first base, with the game heading into the 8th inning as the Brewers hold a 3-1 lead.
Despite not pitching in weeks, Garrett Clevinger came into a crucial situation in the 8th inning, with the Rays believing they had turned a double play, with the ruling at first base being overturned on a challenge, giving the Brewers a critical opportunity once more. The pitch-hit opportunity was given to Gary Sanchez, but the Rays held off the scoring opportunity, as the game went to the 9th inning with Tampa Bay needing two runs to keep their hopes alive in Game 1 of the World Series.
Obviously, the Brewers would turn to Trevor Megill, who was 4/4 in save opportunities in the post-season heading into this one, but with the top of the Rays order coming up, this was anything but a sure thing at home for Milwaukee. A double steal with one out and Junior Caminero at the plate saw the Rays get the tying run to second base, with a walk leading to the bases being loaded in the 9th inning.
The Brewers seemingly weren't overawed though, as Megill faced Liam Hicks, with the star closer getting him to ground into a likely game ending double play. However, the Rays challenged a very close play at second base, ending in the call being overturned, making the game 3-2 with two outs in the final frame, setting up an incredible finish.
In the end however, Megill continued his hot start to the post-season, striking out Jonny Deluca to end the game, giving the Brewers the 3-2 victory in Game 1 as they hold on to win a thrilling, dramatic start to the 2026 Fall Classic as they are now just three wins from their first World Series victory.
