Brewers win 10-1 to take 3-0 Series lead

Ten runs separated the Milwaukee Brewers from the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night, a margin that puts Milwaukee one win away from its first championship. The Brewers defeated the Rays 10-1 at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, to take a 3-0 lead in the World Series.

The series began with Milwaukee falling behind 3-0 after the Rays won the first three games. However, the Brewers have won eight straight postseason games, including four consecutive road victories. Tampa Bay now faces the same odds as the 2004 Boston Red Sox, the only team in 43 previous major league instances to come back from a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven series.

Rookie left-hander Robert Gasser anchored the pitching staff. He allowed only one hit in six innings, facing the minimum 18 batters. Gasser became the first left-hander to achieve this feat in a World Series game since Sandy Koufax did it for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1965. He allowed a line-drive single to Yandy Díaz in the first inning and retired the next 14 batters before Victor Mesa Jr. walked to start the sixth.

The offensive surge came in the fifth inning. The Brewers recorded a postseason-record seven straight hits with two outs. All eight runs scored after the second out was made. Brice Turang, a graduate of Corona Santiago High, hit a liner that bounced off shortstop Taylor Walls' glove to score two runners. Garrett Mitchell, Cooper Pratt, and Sal Frelick added hits to extend the lead to 8-0.

Jackson Chourio finished the game 4 for 5. He also stole a base, becoming the second-youngest player with four hits and a stolen base in a World Series game behind Ty Cobb in 1908. William Contreras was 3 for 5. The Brewers collected 16 total hits against starting pitcher Freddy Peralta and five relievers.

Peralta, the American League Championship Series MVP, struggled against his former team. He was charged with five runs and seven hits in 4⅔ innings. The Rays, who led the American League with 98 wins in the regular season, made several defensive and baserunning errors throughout the game. A force out at second base was overturned by replay review, allowing an extra run to score.

Game 4 is scheduled for Tuesday night at Tropicana Field. The stadium had a sellout crowd of 40,388 on Monday. Many Brewers fans attended the game and cheered from behind the visitors' dugout. If Milwaukee wins Tuesday, it will be the first team to sweep both the League Championship Series and the World Series since the 1976 Cincinnati Reds.

The Brewers, led by 67-year-old manager Pat Murphy, hold a 103-win regular season record. They beat the San Diego Padres in four games in the National League Division Series and swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series. Tampa Bay has never won a World Series in its 29 seasons, having lost to the Philadelphia Phillies in 2008 and the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020.