As the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers prepare for the opening matchup at American Family Field, rookie slugger Junior Caminero has already made his presence felt in Milwaukee in a rather unorthodox fashion. During batting practice, the infielder launched a home run that knocked out a section of the center-field videoboard, setting a tone before Game 1.
The display of raw power continued the following day when another batting-practice drive nearly struck the FOX broadcast booth. The close call prompted on-air personality Kevin Burkhardt to quip during the pregame show, Junior Caminero tried to murder us before the game.
Caminero enters the Fall Classic riding a wave of momentum following a memorable performance in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series against the Cleveland Guardians on Monday. In that pennant-clinching victory, he delivered a crucial seventh-inning laser off the left-field foul pole, punctuated by an extensive home run trot.
The Pitching Matchup for Game 1
The historic opener features the host Brewers handing the ball to 24-year-old fireballer Jacob Misiorowski, marking a World Series start in Milwaukee that is 44 years in the making. Misiorowski made waves in NLDS Game 1 against the Padres by unleashing a 104.8 mph pitch, the fastest postseason offering in the tracking era dating back to 2008. Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy noted that the young right-hander has accumulated nearly 190 innings this season, pushing past his previous workload.
Junior Caminero is already breaking things inside American Family Field.Guy hit a nuke off the scoreboard in center. #RaysUp #WorldSeries pic.twitter.com/GrximOA1k9
Obviously the Padres and Dodgers both had a good approach of just fouling stuff off,
Misiorowski said regarding his approach against disciplined lineups. I bet Tampa Bay is going to do pretty much the same thing. So I think I’ve just got to stick to my strengths and pound the zone.
Meanwhile, the Rays opted to alter their rotation plans. Rather than rolling out Drew Rasmussen on four days of rest after he started Game 1 in both the ALDS and ALCS, Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash turned to 36-year-old free-agent acquisition Nick Martinez for the series opener. Rasmussen is now slated to pitch Game 2 on five days of rest, while former Brewers ace Freddy Peralta is being saved for games at Tropicana Field.
It’s exciting,
Martinez said of the assignment. I think as a team, as a staff, we’re confident in whoever we call up for the mound. It fell on me, and my job is just to rack up as many outs as we can and keep us in this ballgame.
Brewers Add Brandon Woodruff to the Roster
The Brewers made a high-stakes gamble on the eve of the series by adding veteran right-hander Brandon Woodruff to the 26-man roster. Woodruff completed an unlikely comeback from the cusp of season-ending shoulder surgery, throwing 23 pitches in a simulated game earlier in the week to convince club leadership he was ready.
This is a guy that’s one of the most successful, dominant big-game pitchers I’ve ever been around,
Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold said, acknowledging the inherent risks of the roster maneuver. A lot of unknowns there, but obviously, the good version of that guy is somebody you’d love to have on your roster.
Tampa Bay enters the matchup relying heavily on a bullpen anchored by closer Bryan Baker, who has successfully finished all seven of the team’s postseason victories without allowing a run over seven innings of work.
Game 1 Winner Often Captures World Series Title
Historical data indicates that the winner of Game 1 goes on to capture the World Series title 77 times out of 121, translating to a 63.6% success rate overall. That trend has held true in 18 of the last 23 Fall Classics.
Game 1 is underway at American Family Field, with national television coverage provided by FOX and FOX Deportes, alongside streaming options on FOX One.
