Both of the #1-seeds made their way to the World Series this year, and it makes for an intriguing seven games. The Brewers vs Rays may not have been what we were expecting at the beginning of this season, but they are a couple of worthy contenders. Now it’s time to dig into this series with some plays. Come check out what we’ve cooked up for our World Series preview, picks and predictions.
We’ve got three picks for this series for you to tail and let it ride!
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2026 World Series Preview – Brewers vs Rays
Series Winner: Milwaukee Brewers (-165)
When you take a look at what the Brewers just did to the back-to-back defending champions, it’s hard to look somewhere else for the winner. They swept the Dodgers in dominant fashion. Their pitching held the star-studded lineup to just 11 total runs (or 2.75 runs per game). Now they have the whole Brew Crew on full rest and they should be lined up the way that they need.
The Rays have had a similar dominant run with the pitching, but not necessarily against dangerous lineups. Additionally, outside of Drew Rasmussen, we’ve seen a chink in some of the armor of this staff. Griffin Jax and Nick Martinez both got tagged early for runs and Freddy Peralta struggled with walks. Those flaws are much more likely to come back to bite them against an offense like the Brewers.
If you can’t get yourself there on the moneyline price, Milwaukee -1.5 games comes in at +125 and has a lot of value on it.
Player Prop: Yandy Diaz to Record 4+ RBI (+165)
Sure, we just spent time lauding the pitching prowess of the Brewers, but Diaz is white-hot right now. He tore through the first two series of this postseason and racked up a load of extra base hits. Over 39 at-bats, he recorded six hits for extra bases and recorded a .564 slugging percentage. If this series goes on for more than just four games, that should provide him with plenty of chances to get to this mark.
Some might be skeptical of his chances given where he hits in the lineup, but the bottom of the Rays order has been producing. Plus, with the speed they have down there, being on first for Yandy Diaz is being in scoring position.
World Series MVP: William Contreras (+650)
Another player who is hot right now is William Contreras. I think there was a clear argument for him to win NLCS MVP for how well he was hitting as well as what he did with the pitching staff. Over the last three games of the series, he hit .455 with a .818 slugging percentage.
In addition to the value he brings with the bat, he also brought it with the new ABS challenge system. He went 12-for-20 with his challenges and in high leverage situations. On those challenges alone, he generated 0.8 run value against the Dodgers. Grabbing nearly a whole extra run from behind the plate is a weapon and could be the difference maker if the bats are all close.
If you’d like even more info to help make your World Series picks, check out the MLB Gambling Podcast. They’re dropping episodes five days a week to make you the smartest guy/gal at the bar with their MLB picks today.
