Brewers and Rays meet in small-market World Series

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 23 Oct, 14:09 · Archive

The Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays, two of baseball's lowest-spending franchises, are competing in the World Series for the first time.

The Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays are facing each other in the World Series, with both teams seeking their first championship. Neither has won the title before, and this is only the second time since 1920 that the Fall Classic is guaranteed to produce a first-time winner.

Both teams have succeeded despite limited spending. Milwaukee, based in a city of fewer than 600,000 people in Wisconsin, operates MLB's smallest media market and ranks 19th in payroll. The Rays spend even less, ranking 28th in salary spending, with only the Miami Marlins spending less. In April, analytics site FanGraphs gave the Rays a 1.1 per cent chance of winning the World Series and the Brewers 2.1 per cent.

The match-up contrasts sharply with recent World Series dominance by high-spending teams. The Los Angeles Dodgers, with the highest payroll in baseball, had won back-to-back titles before losing to Milwaukee in the National League Championship Series. The Brewers swept the Dodgers 4-0, whilst the Rays beat the Cleveland Guardians in the American League Championship Series.

If either team wins, only four of MLB's 30 franchises will never have won the World Series: the Seattle Mariners, who have never even played in one; the Colorado Rockies; the San Diego Padres; and this year's loser.

How it is being reported

• 2026 World Series: How to watch Brewers and Rays after small ball carries them to Fall ClassicThe Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays brought small ball back to baseball, ranking atop the league in batting average and sacrifice bunts.Fox News · 23 Oct, 14:05
• World Series 2026 predictions: will the Rays or Brewers claim their first title?It’s Milwaukee and Tampa Bay in the 122nd Fall Classic. Our writers predict how it will be decided, who will shine brightest and who will break their World Series maiden Yes - and in fact, evidence that money actively undermines baseball happiness. For the big-market teams, anything less than a World Series is disappointing. Whereas for the Rays (who in April were given a 1.1% chance of winning the World Series by FanGraphs) or Brewers (2.1%), the season is already a success, and winning it all would give their fans more pleasure than a Yankees or Dodgers fan could ever experience. Alan…Guardian Sport · 23 Oct, 09:00
• The unfashionable World Series that could determine baseball’s futureThe Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays are ready to do battle in a ‘small-market World Series’ that may help determine the direction of the sport moving forwardIndependent Sport · 23 Oct, 06:00

In this story: Milwaukee Brewers · Tampa Bay Rays · Los Angeles Dodgers · Milwaukee · Florida

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