We have our World Series matchup! No matter who wins the Fall Classic, there will be a first-time champion. Neither the Milwaukee Brewers nor Tampa Bay Rays have ever won despite multiple appearances in franchise history. It should be an incredible series, with both teams holding the best regular-season record in their respective leagues. Both rosters are incredibly well balanced (they’d have to be to get them this far), but which team holds the edge? Here is a quick position-by-position breakdown to see which club might come out on top.
Catcher: William Contreras (MIL)
No offense to Liam Hicks, but it’s Contreras by a mile. He leads all World Series players with 15-plus at-bats in batting average (.367), on-base percentage (.457), slugging percentage (.700), OPS (1.157) and home runs (3). Contreras was narrowly edged out for the NLCS MVP award by Jake Bauers, though either could have won the award. The backstop might be the most valuable player for either team in this Fall Classic matchup. Contreras has destroyed opposing pitching for the entirety of this Milwaukee playoff run. If that continues against Tampa Bay, he could certainly lead the Crew to their first World Series.
First Base: Jake Bauers (MIL)
This one is a surprising toss-up. Bauers and Jonathan Aranda have performed about the same. The Brewer takes the nod due to his extremely hot NLCS performance (.286 batting average, eight total bases) and his higher OPS (.864 compared to .676). Bauers has been quite the success story. The first baseman has manned the cold corner quite well despite some miscues throughout the playoffs. He’s made a difference with his bat. However, Aranda heated up near the end of the ALCS, going 5-for-13 (.385) in the final three games. He could certainly ride that wave into the World Series over Bauers.
Second Base: Richie Palacios (TB)
This will be blasphemous to many, especially Brewers fans, but Brice Turang is not the better second baseman in this matchup. I don’t know how it happened, but Turang has been in a massive slump this postseason. Milwaukee’s second baseman has batted .222/.382/.370 in the playoffs with just two RBIs. He’s managed to get on base (seven walks), but was anemic in the NLDS before turning it up a bit against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Championship Series. Instead, Richie Palacios (who most people probably have never heard of outside of Tampa Bay) gets the nod, rightfully so. Palacios owns a ridiculous .364/.364/.500 slash line in 22 at-bats. He’s been a firestarter for the Rays’ offense, and has held down the keystone position well.
Shortstop: Cooper Pratt (MIL)
Despite the fact that Taylor Walls is the better glove out of the two, Pratt wins out solely on the merit of his offense. Walls’ bat has been anemic through the playoffs (.148/.233/.148). Meanwhile, Pratt has surged this postseason (.310/.310/.345). He’s struggled with plate discipline, but has seen the ball so well that it hasn’t mattered. That being said, his defense has suffered this postseason. Pratt was solid in the regular season (+2 Outs Above Average), but has posted a .914 fielding percentage with three errors. That’s still been better all-around production than Walls’ comatose offense.
Third Base: Junior Caminero (TB)
This might be the only one with a glaringly obvious answer. Junior Caminero is one of the best players in the entire American League, and will probably finish runner-up in the AL MVP Award behind frontrunner Yordan Alvarez. Caminero has continued that production this postseason, with a .273/.351/.455 slash line and 15 total bases. The strikeout numbers have been slightly alarming (13), but he’s still been a major contributor. And, sure, David Hamilton has looked phenomenal for Milwaukee (.455 batting average, 1.227 OPS), but he only has 11 at-bats. The Brewers have yet to trust him as a full-time starter, instead splitting time with Joey Ortiz.
Designated Hitter: Yandy Díaz (TB)
It’s hard not to give this one to Christian Yelich. Milwaukee’s captain has been having a resurgent performance this postseason, batting .292/.370/.333 with eight total bases. But that should speak to the playoff production that Díaz has been able to whip up. Díaz leads the Rays (10-plus at-bats) in postseason batting average (.308), slugging percentage (.564), OPS (.906), home runs (2), hits (12) and total bases (22). As a matter of fact, Díaz leads both the Rays and Brewers (20-plus ABs) in hits and total bases. If that production keeps rolling, Milwaukee will have a tough time getting Díaz out this series.
Outfield: Milwaukee Brewers
This is a tougher one, for all the wrong reasons. Neither group has performed that well this postseason. Star left fielder Jackson Chourio has been a playoff hero for Milwaukee despite his lack of production (.171 BA). He’s come through when it mattered, with seven RBIs. Chourio also delivered the walk-off hit in Game 2 of the NLDS. Milwaukee’s crop narrowly beats out Tampa Bay despite both having struggled. The Brewers’ four outfielders own a combined .180 batting average compared to Tampa Bay’s .189 combined BA. However, the Brewers’ outfield crop has proven to be better in the clutch, so they get the edge here.
Starting Rotation: Tampa Bay Rays
Between Freddy Peralta being named the ALCS MVP and Drew Rasmussen surrendering just one run across 21 innings of postseason baseball, this one had to feel a little obvious. Yes, Milwaukee has some incredible upside. If Jacob Misiorowski can return to form, it’ll be a whole new game. However, Misiorowski has looked far from his usual self lately, surrendering three runs over just 8 1/3 innings. The Milwaukee rotation is young with big upside, but they’ve covered just over half as many innings as the Rays’ starters (34.1 IP compared to 60.0 IP). The Brewers have been buoyed by their incredibly deep bullpen, but Tampa Bay has been dominating teams with a 2.25 ERA between Griffin Jax, Nick Martinez, Peralta, Rasmussen and Ian Seymour.
Bullpen: Milwaukee Brewers
It’s easy to think that this one is a toss-up. Both teams feature some elite talent in their relief corps. Bryan Baker is one of the best closers in the American League, and the Brewers have some serious depth in Aaron Ashby, Abner Uribe and others. But the Brew Crew gets the nod here based on playoff performance. Their ‘pen has locked it down, being one of the main reasons they managed to outduel the San Diego Padres in the NLDS. Their six relievers (Ashby, DL Hall, Trevor Megill, Antonio Senzatela, JoJo Romero and Uribe) have combined for a minuscule 0.74 ERA in 36 2/3 innings. Tampa Bay’s bullpen owns a 3.60 ERA due to a few rough outings despite their solid group.
Final Prediction: Rays in 6
Related Headlines