Brewers and Rays Open the World Series in Milwaukee, Neither Club Ever a Champion
Game 1 pits the majors' two best regular-season records against each other and guarantees a first title for one franchise.
The 2026 World Series begins Friday night at American Family Field, and whichever way it goes, a franchise that has never won a championship will get one. The Milwaukee Brewers host the Tampa Bay Rays at 8 p.m. ET for Game 1 (00:00 UTC Saturday).
Two best records, one first-time champion
Milwaukee won a franchise-record 103 games in the regular season, according to MLB.com, and led the majors in wins for a second straight year. That record earned the Brewers home-field advantage. Tampa Bay won 98 games, the best mark in the American League, and took the top seed.
Neither club has won a World Series. The Brewers are back in the Fall Classic for the first time since 1982. The Rays are making their third appearance, after losing to the Phillies in 2008 and the Dodgers in 2020.
How they got here
Milwaukee swept the Padres in the NLDS and then the Dodgers in the NLCS, with Jake Bauers named NLCS MVP. MLB.com also names Jackson Chourio and William Contreras among the lineup's key contributors, with Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson in the rotation.
The Rays had a first-round bye, swept the Yankees in the ALDS, then beat Cleveland in six games in the ALCS. They trailed 2-1 in that series before winning three straight, closing it with a 7-3 win in Game 6. Junior Caminero, who hit 42 home runs in the regular season, hit a two-run homer in that game, and Yandy Diaz added a home run in the eighth, according to ABC30's report. Freddy Peralta was named ALCS MVP.
The storylines
The most obvious is Peralta. He spent eight seasons with Milwaukee before the Mets traded him to Tampa Bay at the trade deadline, and ABC30 reports he is expected to start against his former team. Which game has not been confirmed in the sources Torch reviewed.
The second is the contrast in resources. The Rays' 2026 payroll was $98.3 million, 25th in the league, per the same report, yet they have matched Milwaukee's regular-season excellence.
The regular-season meetings offer a small data point. The teams played once, March 30 to April 1, and Milwaukee won two of three at American Family Field, outscoring Tampa Bay 16-7 across the series, FOX6 reports. Since their first meeting in 2005 the Brewers hold a 15-13 edge. Neither number says much about a seven-game series played seven months later, but it is the only head-to-head evidence on record.
The schedule
Games 1 and 2 are in Milwaukee (Friday and Saturday), Games 3 through 5 in Tampa Bay (Monday, Tuesday and, if needed, Wednesday), and Games 6 and 7, if needed, back in Milwaukee on October 30 and 31. All start at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.