Rays Outlast Brewers in 12 Innings to Keep World Series Alive

The Tampa Bay Rays stayed alive in the World Series on Tuesday night, beating the Milwaukee Brewers 4-3 in 12 innings at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. The win came minutes after Milwaukee had taken the lead and moved within three outs of the first championship in franchise history.

Ben Williamson delivered the decisive hit. He had waited on the bench for hours and had just one postseason hit to his name when manager Kevin Cash sent him up shortly after midnight. With the bases loaded, nobody out and the score tied in the 12th, Williamson pinch hit for Victor Mesa Jr. and swung at the first pitch from left-hander Shane Drohan, a 96 mph sinker on the outside corner. He bounced it into the ground just in front of the plate. The ball kicked up chalk, ricocheted off the hard infield surface and dropped into shallow right field, scoring Nick Fortes from third base.

"Jokingly, in my head I was thinking, 'Yeah, I've been ready to hit since the fourth or fifth inning,'" Williamson said.

The rally began after Cooper Pratt's home run off Ian Seymour put Milwaukee ahead in the top of the 12th. Pratt hit a changeup over the middle into the left field seats for his fourth hit of the game, and the Brewers spilled out of their dugout to celebrate. Then Junior Caminero hit a ground ball that Brewers third baseman Joey Ortiz threw away, and Liam Hicks followed with a single to left. Jonny DeLuca then delivered the tying RBI single, the Rays' first run since the fourth inning, setting up Williamson's at-bat. It was Tampa Bay's first World Series win at Tropicana Field since 2008.

Cash used 21 players, including seven pitchers, in a game that followed a 10-1 Brewers blowout in Game 3. Griffin Jax started against a Milwaukee bullpen game. Nick Martinez, who started Game 1, was told to be ready in relief rather than preparing for a Game 5 start. He entered in the sixth inning and threw two scoreless frames, and closer Bryan Baker then pitched two innings in a game for the first time in 2026.

"Sometimes you just got to see one through," Martinez said. "We can win four in a row. This team is capable of doing that."

Caminero aggravated a left foot injury running out the ground ball that started the 12th-inning rally. He was clearly hobbled but stayed in long enough to sprint from first to third on Hicks' single before Cedric Mullins pinch ran for him. Caminero said he was "good" and "100%" will play in Game 5. Speaking in Spanish, he said the foot has bothered him for about three months, and added: "If my foot is broken, I'll play tomorrow."

Game 5 is Wednesday night, and Tampa Bay's pitching plans are unclear. Drew Rasmussen, the Game 2 starter and presumptive Game 6 starter, said he expects to be available. Baker credited the whole roster for the win. "There's 26 guys that at some point or another throughout the year have come through in a big spot and helped us win a game," he said. Martinez said the team will not dwell on the result. "You don't come down from this high," he said. "You keep going."