2026 World Series preview: Five biggest storylines for Brewers vs. Rays

After 162 regular-season games and countless postseason matchups, it all comes down to this. The World Series is set between the Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays, and by the end of October, we will have our 2026 champion. 

These were two of the best teams in baseball all year long, and with each having been the No. 1 seed in their respective leagues, it looks like we’ve got the two best teams in baseball set to duke it out for immortality.

2026 World Series top storylines: Five things to watch in Brewers vs. Rays

Everything is on the line in this best-of-seven series, and with SeatGeek serving as the Official Ticket Marketplace of MLB, we know the ins and outs of this series better than most. As such, there are five storylines we’ll be following very closely this World Series, which begins with Game 1 in Milwaukee on Friday, Oct. 23. 

Which team will be welcomed to the club?

For the first time since the 2019 Nationals, the World Series winner will be a first-timer. The Brewers and Rays have made a collective five World Series appearances, including this season, but neither has taken home the hardware.

The Brewers’ lone World Series appearance before this year came way back in 1982 when they were in the American League, and they lost to their now-NL Central rival Cardinals. The Rays’ first World Series appearance was a 4-1 series loss to the Phillies, and they lost in six games to the Dodgers back in 2020. 

So which team will join this esteemed list? This has the makings of a very interesting series on paper between two lower-payroll squads that utilize each and every member of their rosters, and one of these squads will have the distinction of having won the first World Series in franchise history by the end of the month. 

Who has the home-field advantage edge? 

The Brewers have home-field advantage in the World Series by virtue of having the best regular-season record in baseball at 103 wins. The Rays had the best record in the American League, so they got to have home-field advantage in the American League bracket. 

I bring this up because these are the two best home teams in baseball. The Brewers and Rays each went 55-26 at home this regular season. Milwaukee was a perfect 4-0 between the NLDS and NLCS at American Family Field, and Tampa Bay went 4-1 at Tropicana Field in the ALDS and ALCS, losing Game 1 to Cleveland in the ALCS. 

Despite having identical home records in the regular season, one team was actually far more dominant at home than the other. That would be the Brewers. 

Tampa Bay had a 373-322 (+51) run differential at home this year. Milwaukee? That would be a 447-281 (+166) run differential. The Brewers scored the most runs at home this year and allowed the fewest runs at their home ballpark. With Milwaukee getting to host four of seven games should this go the distance, that is certainly worth mentioning. 

Rest vs. rust

This is not your typical “rest vs. rust” conversation. Often we use that term when one team is off for close to a week while the other is moving right from one series to the other with maybe one day of rest in between. That’s not the case. 

The Rays needed six games to get past Cleveland in the ALCS, but they finished things up on Monday and now get three full days off to rest up and get their pitching in order. The Brewers finished the NLCS last Thursday, meaning they will have been off for more than a week between Game 4 against the Dodgers and Game 1 against the Rays. 

Why I’m so curious how Milwaukee in particular looks amid the rest is that this is the team’s second extended break in just a few weeks. The Brewers’ first-round bye caused them to have six full days off between Game 162 of the regular season and Game 1 of the NLDS against San Diego. They handled that well enough by beating the Padres in four games and taking the first two games of the series, but is a second long break enough to shake things up?

Bullpen battle

These are two very good bullpens. Not only are there great arms on each side, but both managers have no problems deploying relievers to handle bulk innings. 

That’s especially true for the Brewers. Despite ace Jacob Misiorowski being the presumptive NL Cy Young winner, he’s lasted 8 1/3 innings between his two starts. Fellow starters Robert Gasser and Logan Henderson have pitched nine innings each. Stud lefty reliever Aaron Ashby’s 12 1/3 innings leads the Brewers this postseason, and nine of the 11 pitchers Milwaukee has used this playoffs have pitched 5 1/3 innings or more. 

The Rays have leaned more on their starters than the Brewers have, namely Freddy Peralta and Drew Rasmussen – and for good reason. Peralta, a former Brewer, has a 1.08 ERA in four games (three starts) across 16 2/3 innings. Rasmussen has also been fantastic with a 1.29 ERA in 21 innings over three starts. 

These games will ultimately come down to the bullpens and which squad is better at run prevention with their relievers. The Brewers appear to have the edge there with Ashby, Trevor Megill, JoJo Romero, DL Hall and Abner Uribe, but don’t sleep on what the Rays have. Bryan Baker, Cam Booser, Ian Seymour and Kevin Kelly have all pitched well, and Griffin Jax and Tyler Wells are two big-time arms who could pitch in big spots for Tampa Bay as well. 

Which team homers more?

Pitching and home runs often win you a playoff series. That’s part of why this series is so interesting. 

Both teams were great on the mound this year – Milwaukee was second in team ERA and Tampa Bay was seventh. Each team also scored a lot of runs, with the Brewers second and the Rays 12th. But neither team was dependent on the long ball in the regular season. Tampa was 22nd and the Brewers hit the second-fewest homers in baseball. 

That the Rays were 22nd while featuring Junior Caminero, Yandy Diaz and Jonathan Aranda atop the order is a bit surprising, but what may be more surprising is how much the Brewers have slugged this postseason. 

Milwaukee hit three homers in the NLDS against the Padres before exploding for seven long balls in the NLCS against the Dodgers. I did not see that kind of power barrage coming, but William Contreras, Jackson Chourio, Garrett Mitchell and Jake Bauers brought the power. The Rays have hit seven homers in total this postseason, with four in the ALCS and three in the ALDS. Diaz, Aranda and Caminero have four of them. 

Home runs aren’t everything, but they do help a lot in the postseason. If the Brewers carry over their recent power surge from the NLCS into the World Series, things could get real tough for the Rays.