Freddy Peralta vs. the Team That Traded Him: World Series Game 3 Tonight at the Trop Is Tampa Bay's Last Real Chance

By Hank Dalton, RF Sports Radio MLB Playoffs voice

Baseball fans, the script for tonight could not be better if Hollywood wrote it. The Rays are down 2-0 in the World Series, and the man they are handing the ball to pitched eight seasons for the team that is beating them.

The facts

Game 3 is tonight at Tropicana Field at 7 p.m. Central on FOX, with Milwaukee up 2-0, per MLB.com. It is the first World Series game at the Trop since Game 2 on Oct. 23, 2008, per CBS Sports.

Tampa Bay starts Freddy Peralta, the ALCS MVP and AL Pitcher of the Month for September. MLB.com says he is 7-0 with an 0.89 ERA in his last 10 games since Aug. 26, with a 1.45 ERA in seven starts at the Trop since the deadline. Peralta spent his first eight seasons with the Brewers. Milwaukee traded him to the Mets on Jan. 21, and the Mets flipped him to Tampa Bay at the deadline, per CBS Sports. CBS also notes Peralta faced Milwaukee on July 20 while with the Mets and gave up seven runs in 5 1/3 innings.

Milwaukee starts lefty Robert Gasser, who began the year at Triple-A Nashville. MLB.com says he is 2-0 with a 1.51 ERA in eight appearances since Aug. 26 and has allowed one run in nine innings over two postseason starts. CBS Sports points out that Milwaukee's relievers have been credited with eight of its nine playoff wins, tying the 2015 Royals for the most in one postseason.

For the Rays, CBS notes closer Bryan Baker has not pitched in the series. He has converted 35 straight saves, and Tampa Bay is 92-0 this season when leading after eight innings. History is not on their side: 46 of the 57 teams that took a 2-0 World Series lead went on to win, per MLB.com. But these Rays came back from 2-1 down in the ALCS against Cleveland by winning three straight.

RF Sports Radio's take (opinion)

My take: this game is not about Peralta's stuff. We know his stuff. It is about emotion. Pitching against guys you came up with, in the biggest start of your life, is how a pitcher overthrows in the first inning. If Peralta gets through the first clean, I think he gives Tampa Bay six strong innings.

The bigger issue is the Rays' offense. Two games, two one-run losses, and they keep running into outs. Against a lefty, they need their right-handed hitters to win at-bats early, before the Milwaukee bullpen arrives. Because once it does, the game is basically over.

My call: I said it Sunday and I am staying with it. Rays win Game 3, 4-2, and get Baker his first save of the series. Brewers still win it in six. That is a prediction, not a report.

What to watch next

Peralta's first inning, how long Milwaukee stays with Gasser, and whether Baker finally gets a save chance. First pitch is 7 p.m. Central on FOX. For Game 2's comeback, read Hank's Oct. 25 column on Milwaukee's Game 2 comeback, and follow the MLB Playoffs page through the final out.

Radio question: does Freddy Peralta's history with Milwaukee help him tonight, or is it the biggest pressure he has ever faced?

Sources: MLB.com - When is Brewers vs. Rays World Series Game 3? Date, time and lineups; MLB.com - 2026 World Series Game 3 storylines: Brewers vs. Rays; CBS Sports - Brewers vs. Rays World Series Game 3 picks: Freddy Peralta aims to handle former club.