The Tampa Bay Rays’ aggressive brand of baseball backfired in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday night, with two costly baserunning miscues in a 3-2 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. But don’t expect the Rays to change — that’s not who they are.
Rays won’t ease up on basepaths despite Game 1 miscues
“That’s us,” left fielder Chandler Simpson said after the game. “We can’t run away from that because that’s who we are. Just because we got stopped a couple of times on the basepaths, we can’t shy away from that. Not now, at the end. We just got to continue to go forward. Be smart, be conscious of it, and just learn from it going forward.”
The first blunder came in the fifth inning: Victor Mesa Jr. attempted to steal third on an 0-2, 103 mph fastball from Jacob Misiorowski with two outs and Yandy Diaz — baseball’s best hitter with runners in scoring position — at the plate. Catcher William Contreras fired a perfect throw to nail Mesa and end the inning. “Easy to say now, but it was not the best move,” Mesa admitted. “I apologize or whatever to my teammates because obviously I’m trying to make something positive and it wasn’t done in that way.”
The next inning, Jonathan Aranda was caught in a hit-and-run with Simpson at the plate, as Contreras threw him out at second — ending another rally with star slugger Junior Caminero in the on-deck circle.
Brewers’ Contreras stars in 3-2 World Series win
Contreras was the difference-maker both ways, going 2-for-3 with an RBI while throwing out both runners. It was the first time all postseason the Rays were thrown out on the bases — they were 11-for-11 on steals before Friday, and finished second in MLB in steals this season.
Rays manager Kevin Cash backed the approach: “Look, we know how talented a player he is, but that’s not going to change our aggressive approach on the bases.” The Rays did execute a perfect double steal in the ninth, showing the aggression can still work. Milwaukee, which won 103 games and allowed the second-fewest stolen bases in MLB (71), takes a 1-0 series lead into Game 2.
Rays baserunning (Credits: ESPN)
Also Read: Brewers Survive Wild 9th Inning, Beat Rays 3-2 in World Series Game 1
Source: ESPN — read the full story there.
