Two franchises that have never won a World Series meet in Game 1 on Friday night at American Family Field, with the Milwaukee Brewers hosting the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Brewers finished with a franchise-record 103 wins, the best record in the majors, then swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series. That gave them a full week of rest and let the staff line up its rotation.
The arms on the mound
Milwaukee starts Jacob Misiorowski, who led the majors with a 1.80 ERA and 252 strikeouts in the regular season. His fastball is the best single pitch in the series, but he laboured at times in the NLDS and NLCS, and the Rays are among the most disciplined lineups in baseball at making a starter work.
Tampa Bay goes with Nick Martinez, passing over Drew Rasmussen for the opener. The Rays got here by coming back from a 2-1 deficit against Cleveland in the ALCS and have had only three days off.
Two styles, one trophy
Neither club is built like a traditional power. Both rely on contact, speed on the bases and deep bullpens. Milwaukee's relief group is the deeper of the two, which is why bookmakers made the Brewers about -160 to win the series, with the Rays at +140.
Tampa Bay's path is to steal a road game early, then lean on its own bullpen at home in Games 3 to 5 in St. Petersburg.
History on the line
Milwaukee has not played in a World Series since 1982, when the Brewers lost to St. Louis. Tampa Bay reached the Fall Classic in 2020 and lost it. One of those records ends this month, and it ends either for a city that has waited more than four decades or a franchise that has waited since its first pennant.
Game 2 is Saturday night in Milwaukee. The series shifts to Florida for Game 3 on Monday.