Tampa Bay Rays Force Deciding Game 5 in World Series

The Tampa Bay Rays avoided elimination Tuesday night by winning Game 4 of the 2026 World Series in extra innings. The victory forces a decisive Game 5 on Wednesday, as the Milwaukee Brewers lead the series 3-1.

Milwaukee was three outs from its first championship. Cooper Pratt, a rookie shortstop, led off the 12th inning with a home run. The blast put the Brewers ahead 3-2 for the final time. However, the Rays scored twice in the bottom half of that inning to take the lead and win the game.

The rally began with an error by Brewers third baseman Joey Ortiz. Tampa Bay then collected four consecutive hits. Pinch hitter Ben Williamson ended the game with a single that scored the winning run.

Pratt has been a key offensive player for Milwaukee in this series. He went 6-for-13 over the last three games, recording two doubles, a home run, and five runs batted in. In Game 4, he accounted for half of the Brewers' eight total hits.

The series moves to Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, for Game 5 at 8 p.m. ET. The game will air on FOX. Milwaukee will start Jacob Misiorowski, a 24-year-old right-hander who is the favorite to win the National League Cy Young Award. Misiorowski won Game 1, allowing one run and four hits over five innings. He holds a 2.70 ERA across his three postseason starts.

Tampa Bay will counter with Drew Rasmussen on short rest. Oddsmakers list the Brewers as -160 favorites for the final game. SportsLine's model predicts high scoring, with the over on a 6.5 run line hitting in more than 69% of simulations. The teams have combined for at least seven runs in each of the last three games. Both bullpens were heavily utilized Tuesday, with Milwaukee using seven pitchers and Tampa Bay using six.

Misiorowski has not pitched past five innings this postseason. His five-inning performance in Game 1 remains his longest outing. He has allowed four runs over 13 1/3 innings in three starts. None of those games featured six or more total runs.