NEW YORK — This will probably not sit particularly well with Rob Manfred’s new age analytics aficionados, let alone the army of management proponents for a salary cap, but a small market World Series — minus the Dodgers and all their gluttony and the Yankees with all their home run-or-bust tedium — is the best thing that could have ever happened to baseball.
It’s not just about the disparity of payrolls either. For all the fans who’ve been watching this postseason, no matter who they were rooting for, they’ve had reason to rejoice over the way the Brewers, Guardians and Rays play the game — the way it’s supposed to be played — that is until the baseball moguls allowed the analytical propeller heads to take it over and eliminate bunting and put-the-ball-in play small ball, at the same time finding prolific batters’ strikeouts perfectly acceptable.
It has also been a testament to astute roster building.
In a lot of ways, a review of the overall 2026 team stats, tells us why it is not really a surprise the Brewers, Guardians and Rays all made the baseball Final Four and why — hopefully — the game may be gradually going back to the style of play that made it the nation’s No. 1 sport it used to be.
Let’s start with the Brewers, who went into first place in the NL Central on May 19 and never looked back. They were second in the majors with 832 runs and first in hits with 1,422 — but next-to-last in homers with 154! Included in those hits were 37 sacrifice hits, fifth most in the majors. (Surprisingly, the Rays, who used to be the prototype analytics team, led the majors with 45 sacrifice hits. In other words, they are no longer adhering to the analytical gospel against bunting and giving up an extra out to advance a baserunner.)
The Brewers and Rays also tied for the major league lead in batting (.258). And although the Brewers did have the 13th most strikeouts in the majors, they offset that with the second-most walks and a major league-leading .341 on-base pct. When it came to winning by putting the ball in play, the Yankees were among the worst teams in the majors while, again, the Brewers and Rays were the best and the Guardians were not that far behind.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, 47.9% of the Yankees’ runs this year came via the home run, second only to the Reds’ 48.9. Meanwhile, the Brewers had the fewest number of runs via the home run (32.1%) and the Rays the second fewest (34.4%). (Nevertheless, in their sweep of the Dodgers in the NLCS, the ever resourceful Brewers turned more to their power game and out-homered the Dodgers, 7-1.) The Guardians were at 38.6% this year but that was mostly due to the fact they had the 27th fewest homers in the majors.
Which brings us to the subject of roster building and teams getting the most bang for the buck. It was pointed out during the NLCS that the Dodgers with their second-highest $338 million payroll (thanks to $150 million in deferred money) was more than the Brewers ($143.5M), Rays ($98.3M) and Guardians ($74.2M) combined. There are no big money free agents on any of their rosters.
Rather, the Brewers filled in gaping holes in their lineup with inexpensive castoffs at catcher (William Contreras — December ’22 trade from the Braves for backup outfielder Esteury Ruiz), first base (Jake Bauers — released by the Yankees), third base David Hamilton (trade from the Red Sox with No. 2 starter Kyle Harrison for infielder Caleb Durbin), utility infielder Joey Ortiz (February ‘24 trade from the Orioles with lefty set-up man D.L. Hall for free agent-to-be Corbin Burnes), and much-released former Yankee backup catcher Gary Sanchez. Together Bauers and Contreras combined for 44 homers and 180 RBIs during the regular season and two homers and nine RBIs against the Dodgers in the NLCS.
In the case of the Guardians, most of their core — Jose Ramirez, shortstop Brayan Rocchio, center fielder Steven Kwan, right-fielder/first baseman Chase DeLauter, second baseman Travis Bazzana, starting pitchers Parker Messick, Gavin Williams, closer Cade Smith, set-up relievers Daniel Espino, Hunter Gaddis and Tim Herrin — is home grown. But President of Baseball Operation Chris Antonetti then did a masterful job of addressing their power void with low cost trade deadline acquisitions — outfielder Jo Adell from the Angels catcher Patrick Bailey from the Giants and first baseman Nathaniel Lowe from the Reds — who’ve so far have combined for three homers and 15 RBI in the postseason.
Of course, when it comes to low cost roster building, perhaps no GM in baseball has been more savvy and resourceful than the Rays’ Erik Neander. With the exceptions of No. 1 starter Drew Rasmussen, first baseman Jonathan Aranda, shortstop Taylor Walls and left-fielder Chandler Simpson, nearly the entire Rays’ roster including Junior Caminero, outfielders Victor Mesa Jr. and Jonny DeLuca, second baseman Richie Palacios, catcher Liam Hicks, DH Yandy Diaz, utilityman Ryan Vilade, plus closer Bryan Baker, and set-up relievers Cam Booser, Tyler Wells, Cole Sulser and Kevin Kelly, was all acquired by Neander through straight purchases, waiver claims and under-the-radar trades that cost the Rays next to nothing.
Unfortunately, the one odious element of baseball analytics that will never be reversed now is the emasculation of starting pitching. Bullpen ball, especially in the postseason, has become a way of life.
But at least in the Brewers’ 6-4 clinching Game 4 NLCS win over the Dodgers there was this satisfying development: Dodger starter Tyler Glasnow, to whom they’re paying $30 million this year, was lifted after 4 1/3 innings while relievers Edwin Diaz (signed to a three-year/$69 million contract) and Tanner Scott (four year/$72 million contract) came on later to give up the tie-breaking and insurance run homers. At the same time, unsung Brewer relievers Jo Jo Romero ($4.6M) and Aaron Ashby ($5.7M) combined to shut the Dodgers out over the final five innings. Another example of Brewer grit trumping Dodger gluttony.