- Oct 16, 2026
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SportsMafia Wire graphic. Photo: Vmartin12 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Team logos via ESPN.
The World Series begins at 7 p.m. CT tonight in Milwaukee, with the Tampa Bay Rays facing the Brewers in the first two games before a travel day Sunday.
Nick Martinez will start for Tampa Bay opposite Milwaukee rookie Jacob Misiorowski in the opener. Martinez allowed one run and two hits across 5 1/3 innings in ALCS Game 4 against the Guardians and posted a 3.10 ERA during the regular season. Drew Rasmussen is likely to start Game 2 for the Rays.
The series shifts to Tampa Bay for Games 3 through 5, if needed, from Monday through Wednesday. Any Games 6 and 7 would return to Milwaukee next Friday and Saturday. World Series rosters are due shortly and will be revealed in the coming hours.
Milwaukee right-hander Brandon Woodruff continues working back from a shoulder injury and could claim the final bullpen spot over Kyle Harrison or Chad Patrick, neither of whom has pitched yet this postseason. The Brewers face risk if Woodruff is reinjured, though his initial injury did not occur in the postseason.
Both clubs rank as the two worst teams by Statcast's ABS Runs Above Average metric. Milwaukee batters have challenged seven pitches this postseason, while Tampa Bay has yet to challenge any. Rays manager Kevin Cash said his club will be selective with challenges if ahead late, reminding players to reserve them for the catcher.
Source: MLB Trade Rumors - Fri Oct 23, 9:30 AM ET
Written by the SportsMafia Wire desk in our own words from the original reporting (AI-assisted, checked against the source).