Rays Stay Alive: 4 Takeaways From Tampa Bay’s World Series Game 4 Win vs. Brewers

The ball traveled 396 feet off the bat of Brewers rookie Cooper Pratt and into the left-field bleachers in the 12th inning at Tropicana Park, seeming less like a floating orb and more like a darting dagger delivered directly to the hearts of Rays fans. But Tampa Bay wasnt ready for its season to end. 

These Rays can fight back, too.

With their season on life support after Pratts go-ahead blast, they put on pressure in the bottom of the 12th, delivering the Brewers a taste of their own medicine. And after a fielding error and four straight singles, the Rays ensured their season would live on at least another day. 

Only four of the previous 25 teams to go down 3-0 in a best-of-seven World Series had even forced a Game 5. As Tuesday night gave way to Wednesday morning, the Rays became the fifth. 

Here are my takeaways from Tampa Bays 4-3 Game 4 win. 

If anyone thought a 10-1 loss in Game 3 and a 3-0 series deficit would make the Rays roll over in Game 4, Tampa Bay made clear from the start that wouldnt be the case. 

An RBI single from Chandler Simpson gave the Rays an early lead. As they have done all year, the Brewers answered back to tie the game in the fourth. But this time, the Rays were ready to respond, answering back quickly and forcing mistakes. 

Junior Caminero singled, moved to second on a groundout by Liam Hicks, then scored on an error. On a grounder by Jonny DeLuca, Caminero avoided a tag by Brewers third baseman David Hamilton, who then tried to get the speedy DeLuca at first base. The off-balance throw across the diamond was way off target, getting past first baseman Jake Bauers and allowing Caminero to score the go-ahead run. 

The Brewers challenged to see if Hamilton made the tag — Caminero drifted into the infield grass to try to avoid the tag but was not ruled out of the baseline, which is not reviewable — and that was unsuccessful.

Surprisingly, the typically surehanded Brewers committed more than twice as many errors as any other team this postseason. But they often found ways to redeem themselves. 

Tuesday was no different. 

But the Rays countered every punch, none more important than the 12th. Another error by a Brewers third baseman, this one by Joey Ortiz, allowed Caminero to reach base to start the inning. 

Brewers manager Pat Murphy turned to Shane Drohan. Hicks singled, DeLuca hit a game-tying single, Chandler Simpson loaded the bases with a single and Ben Williamson chopped a grounder over the infield, emptying the home dugout as his teammates mobbed in shallow right field, right where his chopper landed.

It surprised many when the Brewers gave Pratt an eight-year contract extension in April. At the time, the then-21-year-old had yet to make his MLB debut and had only a handful of Triple-A at-bats under his belt. 

“I think Brewers fans will fall in love with him,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy claimed at the time. 

Six months later, Pratt nearly won them the World Series.

The Milwaukee shortstop started the scoring for the Brewers with a game-tying RBI double in the fourth as “COOOOP” chants from the loud Brewers contingent in the crowd echoed through Tropicana Field. 

They would get louder eight innings later, when he launched a 396-foot, game-winning solo home run off Ian Seymour in the 12th. The rookie finished the night 4-for-5 and knocked in runs in each of the last three games of the series, clearly unintimidated by baseballs biggest stage. 

As it usually goes for these Brewers players, Hamilton quickly found a way to make up for his blunder. 

In the clinching Game 4 of the National League Championship Series, it was third baseman Hamilton who was the unlikely home run hero when he came through with a solo shot off Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz to give the Brewers some breathing room and help cement their first trip to the World Series since 1982. 

Hamilton only had four home runs on the year to that poi