The World Series kicks off this Friday, and Game 1 is already set to be a showdown between Jacob Misiorowski for the Brewers and Drew Rasmussen for the Rays. On paper, if you just look at the raw career stats, Milwaukee’s hitters look like they have the Rays’ top three arms completely figured out. We’re talking some seriously “eye-popping” numbers against Rasmussen, Freddy Peralta, and Nick Martinez.
History Says Brewers Hitters Are Dominant
Let’s dive into these career totals for the Brewers’ 13 position players who could be stepping up to the plate in the Fall Classic. Against Drew Rasmussen, they’ve collectively gone 12-for-48, rocking a .752 OPS, smacking 3 home runs, and drawing 3 walks. Not bad at all, right?
Then you get to Freddy Peralta. Against him, these Brewers have put up a combined 13-for-36 line, an insane 1.034 OPS, 2 dingers, and 3 walks. That’s a ridiculous slash line. And for Nick Martinez, the Brewers have tallied 30 hits in 122 at-bats, a .737 OPS, 6 homers, and 4 walks. Those career numbers make it look like the Brewers are walking into this World Series with a massive advantage against the Rays’ best. But here’s where things get tricky.
The Brutal Truth of This Season’s Matchups
Here’s the kicker: those impressive career numbers? They “lack context.” This season, when the Brewers faced each of these pitchers once, the results were, let’s just say, “not so great.” It’s almost like they were playing a completely different team.
Take Freddy Peralta, for example. When the Brewers saw him this season, he was still pitching for the New York Mets and, get this, he “had not yet been fixed by the Rays.” Think about that for a second. Even against that “unfixed” version of Peralta, the Brewers still managed 8 hits, including three doubles and two home runs. Against Rasmussen this season, they mustered just three hits, with only one of those being a home run from Brice Turang. And against Martinez, the Brewers compiled four hits, including one double and one home run.
The bottom line is simple: while the career stats might give Brewers fans a warm, fuzzy feeling, this year, the Rays’ top three starters have absolutely “had the edge.”
So, as we head into Game 1 on Friday, remember that Milwaukee has actually “never faced this version of Peralta.” That alone could make his starts “the most pivotal matchup of the series.” Are those old numbers going to haunt the Rays, or will the “fixed” versions of their aces shut down the Brewers? We’re about to find out!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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