Brewers Take 3-0 Lead After Record Eighth-Inning Rally
Milwaukee scored eight two-out runs in the fifth inning against Tampa Bay to move within one win of the franchise's first title.
By Anthony Shevchenko ·
The Milwaukee Brewers scored eight two-out runs in the fifth inning of Game 3 on Monday night, a World Series record for a single frame, beating the Tampa Bay Rays 10-1 at Tropicana Field. Milwaukee now leads the series 3-0 and needs one more win to claim the first championship in franchise history.
The rally began against former Brewer Freddy Peralta, who exited with the bases loaded and two outs. Cam Booser took over for Tampa Bay, and Milwaukee's Brice Turang sent a grounder off shortstop Taylor Walls' glove that plated two runs. The Brewers followed with seven consecutive hits, producing the eight-run inning without hitting a home run.
Milwaukee has outscored Tampa Bay 18-7 across the first three games while hitting one home run total. That approach mirrors the regular season, where the Brewers posted a league-best 103 wins and started the playoffs 10-1. Jackson Chourio collected four hits on Monday, and William Contreras added three, bringing his postseason total to 18, the most in Milwaukee playoff history.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy described his team's approach without looking ahead to a clinching scenario. "The guys play hard," Murphy said. "They don't give in. They make every pitch count, and that's what it takes to win." He added, "This is a best-of-seven series. It looks like we're in the driver's seat, but it's baseball. Anything can happen."
Milwaukee's pitching staff also limited Tampa Bay. Rookie left-hander Robert Gasser threw six shutout innings, allowing one hit and facing the minimum number of batters. His postseason ERA dropped to 0.60 across 15 innings. He became the first left-hander to face the minimum over at least six innings of a World Series game since Sandy Koufax did it in 1965.
The game also marked a return for Milwaukee's longest-tenured player. Brandon Woodruff, 33, entered in the ninth inning and recorded the final three outs, his first appearance since he injured his shoulder on July 4. "We've had a lot of playoff games, and I haven't been able to participate in one since (2021)," Woodruff said. "What better way to make your re-debut in the playoffs than in the World Series?"
History favors Milwaukee, though the clubhouse remains focused on Tuesday's Game 4. Across 121 World Series played before this one, 25 teams held a 3-0 lead, and every one of those teams won the title. Twenty-one of those series ended in a sweep. Tampa Bay, playing its first home World Series game since 2008, has dropped each of the first three matchups.
Milwaukee outfielder Sal Frelick framed the next game as a singular task. "We're focused on winning tomorrow," Frelick said. "We're going to treat it like a Game 7. We obviously know that one more win can get us a nice trophy, but it's really just win every pitch, every inning, every at-bat."
