Brewers Hand Game 5 Ball to Misiorowski With First World Series Title in Reach

Jacob Misiorowski walked through a crowded corridor at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, early Wednesday without slowing down. A fan called out "Miz!" and reached for a fist bump, but the Milwaukee Brewers pitcher offered only a nod, his focus seemingly on the night ahead.

Misiorowski starts Game 5 of the World Series on Wednesday night with a chance to clinch the first championship in Brewers history. Milwaukee missed its first opportunity in Game 4, when Tampa Bay's Ben Williamson hit a walk-off single in the bottom of the 12th inning. His chopper finished a two-run Rays rally that erased a one-run Brewers lead.

Manager Pat Murphy took the loss in stride. "When you're achieving something like this, it's going to have its adversity," he said. "We had some things go our way yesterday. They had some things go their way today." He added that a competitor wakes up the next morning ready to play.

Milwaukee nearly had a storybook finish in that game. Rookie Cooper Pratt, 22, hit a solo home run off Ian Seymour in the top of the 12th, and he finished with three other hits. Pratt signed a contract extension six months ago, and his night showed the Brewers lean on more than veterans such as Christian Yelich and William Contreras. He has had his share of defensive growing pains but has also delivered.

Misiorowski, whose fastball reaches 105 mph, is the club's brightest star and is all but certain to win the NL Cy Young Award in a few weeks. His October, though, has not matched that standard. His first postseason start, against the Padres in the NLDS, lasted four innings. His second, against the Dodgers, went 4⅓. He lasted five innings in Game 1 of the World Series. Milwaukee's eight-game winning streak this month, which Tampa Bay finally snapped, was driven largely by his teammates.

Tampa Bay, down 3-0 in the series, used everything it had to survive Game 4. Manager Kevin Cash went to closer Bryan Baker for two innings and to Seymour for another. Cameron Booser recorded one out in his second straight appearance. Nick Martinez, the scheduled Game 5 starter for the Rays, also pitched in the game.

Murphy, meanwhile, protected his own pitching for the next day. Aaron Ashby threw 2⅓ scoreless innings beginning in the ninth, but Murphy removed him with one out in the 11th. "He was disappointed he was coming out," Murphy said. "But I said we've got to be mindful of your health, and we've got to be mindful of winning the whole thing."

Murphy said he never considered using Misiorowski in that spot, calling it too risky to blow a one-run road lead. He said even a three-run lead in the 13th inning would probably not have changed his mind.

Ashby said the loss stings but is "part of our story," adding that his teammates are fired up to return Wednesday. With the baseball in the hands of its 24-year-old star, Milwaukee now waits to see whether Game 5 becomes his moment.