Milwaukee are two wins from a first World Series title after a comeback built entirely on relief pitching. The Brewers trailed Tampa Bay by four runs in the first inning of Game 2 on Saturday night, then shut the Rays out for the rest of the game and won 5-4 to take a 2-0 lead in the best of seven series.
Four down, then nothing more
Logan Henderson lasted three innings and gave up four runs, three of them earned, on three hits. What followed was six scoreless innings from the Milwaukee relief corps, before Abner Uribe and Aaron Ashby finished the game.
The win was the eighth by Brewers relievers in nine postseason victories, a mark that matches the 2015 Kansas City Royals for the most wins by relievers in a single postseason. Ashby finished the game for his third save of these playoffs.
Tampa Bay had its chances late. Jonny DeLuca doubled to open the ninth, moved to third on a groundout, and stayed there when Yandy Diaz struck out on a full count pitch. It was the second straight game in which the Rays left the tying run at third in the ninth.
The rally in two swings
Milwaukee cut the early deficit in half in the bottom of the first, then closed to 4-3 in the fourth with help from a Tampa Bay error. The tying blow came in the sixth, when Sal Frelick hit a leadoff home run off Ian Seymour, a 408 foot drive to centre field on a 3-2 fastball that levelled the score at four.
The go ahead run arrived an inning later. Brice Turang doubled to open the seventh off Tyler Wells and moved up on a flyout, and rookie Cooper Pratt greeted Kevin Kelly with a single to right field that put Milwaukee ahead 5-4. Pratt had earlier made a throwing error that helped Tampa Bay score in the first.
As Reuters reported, Milwaukee also threatened again in the eighth, only for Jackson Chourio to be thrown out at home on a close play that stood after review. The missed insurance run did not matter, because the bullpen never gave the lead back.
Game 3 moves to St. Petersburg, Florida, on Monday. History says the Rays face a steep climb: only ten teams have recovered from a 2-0 deficit to win a World Series, the most recent being the New York Yankees in 1996. That is the quiet advantage of a bullpen this reliable.
