The Milwaukee Brewers failed to close out the 2026 World Series in Game 4. However, they will get a shot at completing the gentleman’s sweep at home when hosting the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 5.
Back home at American Family Field, the Brewers vie to put an end to the 2026 MLB Postseason. Not just that, but snap their ringless drought in franchise history. Both Milwaukee and Tampa Bay are among the five teams that have never won the World Series. In 2026, that list will shrink to four organizations.
However, only the Brewers will get the chance to do it in Game 5. The Rays are playing for their lives, the Brewers for the chance to tell the story for the rest of theirs. If Game 4 was any indication, fans across MLB should be in for another instant classic in Game 5 of the 2026 World Series.
What happens if Brewers win against Rays?
The Brewers will be crowned the 2026 World Series champions with a victory at home against the Rays in Game 5. Since taking a 3-0 series lead, Milwaukee is only one win away from their first championship in franchise history. As they learned in Game 4, however, that’s the hardest triumph to secure.
Jonny DeLuca #21 of the Tampa Bay Rays during the 2026 World Series.
On the other hand, the Rays would see their hopes be crushed to pieces with a loss in Game 5, and they would remain one of four teams yet to hoist the Commissioner’s Trophy in MLB.
What happens if Brewers and Rays tie?
Just as it happened in Game 4, if the Brewers and Rays remain tied at the end of the ninth inning the game will head to extra innings. With no ties allowed in MLB Postseason, Game 5 could go as long as needed until a victor is decided at American Family Field.
Contrary to regular season games, there is no extra-inning rule (ghost runner at second base) in the playoffs or World Series, that means Milwaukee and Tampa Bay will truly have to earn everything in extra innings.
If the Rays prevail in the extra inning, they will force a Game 6 back in Florida. If the Brewers finish on top, the 2026 MLB Postseason will be over, and the home team crowned. That would also mark the unofficial start of the MLB offseason, in which both the Brewers and Rays have several players set to become free agents.
What happens if Brewers lose against Rays?
If the Brewers fall at home in Game 5, all hope will not be lost, but they might start panicking. The 2026 World Series will head to a Game 6 back in St. Petersburg and what once was a comfortable 3-0 series lead for Milwaukee will turn into a narrow 3-2 lead in a two-day span.
No team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in the World Series, but there’s a first time for everything and the Brewers will start getting anxious they might be on the wrong side of history.
To avoid all that, the easiest way out is for the Brewers to secure one more win and hoist the World Series. Unfortunately for them, there is nothing easy in doing that.
Key takeaways
- The Brewers are up 3-1 in the World Series entering Game 5 at home.
- A Brewers win in Game 5 will clinch the 2026 World Series.
- A Brewers loss in Game 5 will take the World Series back to Tampa Bay for Game 6.
