Brewers one win from title after 10-0 rout of Rays in Game 3

The Milwaukee Brewers are one win from a World Series title after burying the Tampa Bay Rays 10-0 on Monday night in Game 3 behind a historically explosive fifth inning. Milwaukee scored eight runs in the top of the fifth, all with two outs, to turn a tight game at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, into a rout and seize a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

That inning was the game’s turning point and, likely, the series’ defining swing. The Brewers led just 2-0 before the outburst, then sent Tampa Bay through a collapse it could not stop. Milwaukee now heads into Game 4 needing one more victory to clinch the championship, while the Rays face the weight of a deficit that has almost never been overcome in postseason baseball.

The rally started with two outs when Jackson Chourio singled and stole second. Christian Yelich then walked, and the inning appeared close to ending when William Contreras hit a chopper that was initially ruled a forceout. Replay overturned the call, however, ruling Yelich safe and extending the inning.

From there, Milwaukee overwhelmed Tampa Bay with a string of run-scoring hits. Brice Turang, Garrett Mitchell, Cooper Pratt, Sal Frelick, David Hamilton and Chourio all delivered RBI knocks as the Brewers kept the line moving. Rays reliever Cam Booser entered during the inning and allowed four straight hits without recording an out, and Cole Sulser followed and gave up additional RBI hits before the inning finally ended. All eight Milwaukee runs in the fifth scored with two outs.

Major League Baseball, citing OptaSTATS, said the eight two-out runs were the most ever scored in a World Series inning. MLB also said the frame was the second-highest-scoring single inning in postseason history, trailing only the 11 runs the Los Angeles Dodgers scored in an inning during the 2020 National League Championship Series. And the Brewers, again according to MLB and OptaSTATS, became the first team in any postseason game to have seven consecutive batters record a hit.

Milwaukee finished with 10 runs on 15 hits, while Tampa Bay managed one hit. Chourio went 4 for 5, and MLB said that at 22 years, 229 days old, he became the youngest player with a four-hit game in the World Series since Joe Garagiola in 1946. Brewers starter Robert Gasser handled the rest, throwing six scoreless innings and allowing just one hit. Rays starter Freddy Peralta was charged with five runs in 4 2/3 innings, while Booser’s line was 0.0 innings, four hits and four runs.

The Rays are now on the brink. Only one team in Major League Baseball postseason history — the 2004 Boston Red Sox — has come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a series. Milwaukee is one win away from making sure there is no second exception.