Brewers erase 4-0 deficit to beat Rays 5-4, take 2-0 World Series lead

The Milwaukee Brewers rallied from a 4-0 deficit to defeat the Tampa Bay Rays 5-4 in Game 2 of the 2026 World Series, played Saturday night at American Family Field in Milwaukee, according to recaps from ESPN and MLB.com. The win puts the Brewers ahead 2-0 in the best-of-seven series.

How the Rays built an early lead

The Rays scored all four of their runs in the top of the first inning off Brewers rookie starter Logan Henderson. Yandy Diaz's leadoff grounder was followed by an error on Brewers infielder Cooper Pratt, and Chandler Simpson and Junior Caminero added RBI singles, according to ESPN and MLB.com. Rays catcher Liam Hicks then hit a two-run home run, a 411-foot drive to right-center field that MLB.com described as the first home run of the Series.

Milwaukee's comeback

Milwaukee answered immediately, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first on an RBI single from Garrett Mitchell after Jackson Chourio, Jake Bauers and William Contreras reached base, per MLB.com's account. David Hamilton's grounder in the fourth inning, aided by an error from Rays first baseman Jonathan Aranda, cut the deficit to 4-3.

The game stayed tied until the sixth inning, when outfielder Sal Frelick hit a solo home run to center field to level the score at 4-4. ESPN reported the homer ended a stretch of 103 plate appearances without a home run for Frelick.

In the seventh inning, Brice Turang doubled and advanced to third before Cooper Pratt singled to right field to drive in the go-ahead run, according to MLB.com. Pratt had been charged with the first-inning error that opened the door for Tampa Bay's runs.

Pitching and a costly baserunning decision

Rays starter Drew Rasmussen was pulled after 3⅔ innings, his shortest outing in months, having allowed three runs on six hits, per ESPN. Tampa Bay relievers Ian Seymour, Tyler Wells and Kevin Kelly followed. For Milwaukee, Henderson lasted three innings and allowed four runs, three of them earned, before five Brewers relievers combined to pitch six shutout innings, Yahoo Sports reported. Abner Uribe earned the win with 1⅓ hitless innings, and Aaron Ashby recorded the save with three strikeouts in the ninth, according to ESPN.

Yahoo Sports also reported that Rays third-base coach Brady Williams sent Liam Hicks home on a sixth-inning single despite Hicks being one of the team's slower runners; Hicks was thrown out at the plate by roughly ten feet, and Tampa Bay's replay challenge was unsuccessful.

Where the comeback ranks historically

ESPN reported that the win was Milwaukee's seventh comeback victory of this postseason, after the Brewers also erased a 4-0 deficit against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series. The Brewers became the fifth team to overcome a four-run deficit twice in a single postseason, and the first since the Philadelphia Phillies in 2022, per ESPN's reporting. ESPN also noted that Henderson and his Game 1 counterpart on the pitching staff marked the first time teammates aged 24 or younger had started the first two games of a World Series since Cincinnati's Gary Nolan and Ross Grimsley in 1972, and that the Brewers have won 13 straight games Henderson has started.

Series outlook

MLB.com cited historical data showing that teams that have taken a 2-0 lead in the World Series have gone on to win the championship in 80.7% of prior instances; ESPN's figure, based on a count of 57 previous teams taking a 2-0 lead, put 46 of them winning the title. Game 3 is scheduled for Monday night at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, with MLB.com noting it will be the Brewers' first appearance there since 2023.