Brewers vs Rays World Series Predictions & Best Bets

Major League Baseball’s worst nightmare is about to begin. The 2026 World Series between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays begins on Friday night. Two small-market teams that the general public doesn’t care about. Two of the teams with the lowest payrolls in MLB, squashing the owners’ argument for a salary cap. Here’s who’s going to win the series, and how you can make money on it.

Brewers vs Rays World Series Predictions & Best Bets

#1 Tampa Bay Rays vs #1 Milwaukee Brewers

Game 1: Friday, 8:00 PM ET @ Milwaukee

Game 2: Saturday, 8:00 PM ET @ Milwaukee

Game 3: Monday, 8:00 PM ET @ Tampa Bay

Game 4: Tuesday, 8:00 PM ET @ Tampa Bay

Game 5: Wednesday, 8:00 PM ET @ Tampa Bay (if necessary)

Game 6: Friday, 8:00 PM ET @ Milwaukee (if necessary)

Game 7: Saturday, 8:00 PM ET @ Milwaukee (if necessary)

There were no Wild Card shenanigans in this year’s MLB Playoffs, as the bracket pretty much went 100% the way of the chalk. This leaves us with the American League’s best regular-season team, the (98-64) Tampa Bay Rays, meeting the National League’s top team, the (103-59) Milwaukee Brewers.

Not only is this a battle between two small-market teams devoid of real star power (apologies to Jacob Misiorowski, I guess), but these are also two teams that rely on small ball to win games. If chicks really do dig the long ball, then they probably don’t need to tune into this series, as both teams rank near the bottom of the majors in dingers.

But that isn’t to say that we aren’t in for an exciting series. For the first time since 1980, we’re guaranteed to crown a first-time champion. That’s something. And I expect that first-time winner to be the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Brew Crew have been chilling on their respective couches since sweeping the New York Yankees over a week ago. The Rays, meanwhile, just wrapped up with the Cleveland Guardians on Monday. The Brewers will have all their pitchers, including the aforementioned Miz, rested and ready to go come Friday.

In addition to the rest advantage, the home field advantage should not be overlooked in this World Series. Historically (since the dawn of the Wild Card era), the team with the home field advantage in the World Series has won the championship two-thirds of the time. That’s a massive advantage. Plus, the Brewers were an MLB best (tied with the Rays, ironically) 55-26 at American Family Field this season, and they’ve run the table at home during their postseason run, going 4-0.

While Milwaukee on the moneyline is a little chalky, a win is a win. Let’s get a little riskier with a World Series MVP bet on Jacob Misiorowski. The 24-year-old Brewers ace has only pitched 8.1 innings thus far in the postseason, so his arm should be feeling good. Scheduled to start Game 1, The Miz could get two (three?!) starts in the series, shut down the Rays, and cash at +800 for us.

Best Bets: Milwaukee to win series (-165); Jacob Misiorowski to win World Series MVP (+800)