Brewers Look to Clinch First World Series Title as Rays Fight Elimination in Game 5

The Milwaukee Brewers had a championship within reach on Tuesday, only to watch the Tampa Bay Rays take it away. Milwaukee was three outs from a sweep and the first title in franchise history when Tampa Bay rallied, forcing a Game 5 on Wednesday night.

Even so, the Brewers lead the 2026 World Series 3-1 and remain in a strong position. Game 5 is set for 8 p.m. ET at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla., and will air on FOX.

Game 4 went to extra innings. Rookie shortstop Cooper Pratt led off the top of the 12th with the first postseason home run of his career, putting Milwaukee ahead 3-2. The Rays answered in the bottom half. After an error by Brewers third baseman Joey Ortiz, Tampa Bay strung together four consecutive hits, and pinch hitter Ben Williamson ended it with a walk-off single.

Milwaukee will turn to Jacob Misiorowski, a 24-year-old right-hander who is the heavy favorite to win the 2026 National League Cy Young Award. He won Game 1 of the Fall Classic, allowing one run and four hits over five innings, and carries a 2.70 ERA through three starts this postseason. Tampa Bay will counter with Drew Rasmussen on short rest as it tries to avoid elimination for a second straight game.

Pratt has been a driving force for the Brewers in the series. After going 0-for-3 in Game 1, the 22-year-old is 6-for-13 over the last three games with two doubles, a homer and five RBI. He accounted for half of Milwaukee's eight hits in Game 4.

Oddsmakers favor the Brewers at -160 for Game 5. SportsLine's projection model expects plenty of offense, with the Over on a 6.5 line hitting in well over 69% of its simulations. Misiorowski has been stingy, allowing just four runs over 13 1/3 innings across his three postseason starts, and none of those games produced six or more total runs. But the Brewers and Rays have combined for at least seven runs in each of the last three World Series games, and both bullpens were heavily used Tuesday, with Milwaukee employing seven pitchers and Tampa Bay six.

Misiorowski has also yet to pitch deep into a game this October, as his five innings in Game 1 are his longest outing. SportsLine expert PropBetGuy is backing him to record fewer than 15.5 outs on Wednesday.

The baseball showdown headlines a busy night of sports. The slate also includes a 12-game NBA schedule, with the Spurs visiting the Jazz at 9 p.m. ET in Salt Lake City, and a four-game NHL card that features the Flames at the Oilers at 8:30 p.m. ET in Edmonton. Two college football games round out the evening, including Jacksonville State at New Mexico State at 8 p.m. ET in Las Cruces, N.M.