Rays turn to former Brewers' ace Freddy Peralta with trip to World Series on the line

While the Milwaukee Brewers have been enjoying their extended break from baseball action following their NLCS sweep over the Los Angeles Dodgers, the American League pennant race has been a far more complicated affair.

There was a rain-out that postponed Game 4 and eliminated the all-important travel day between stadiums. The Cleveland Guardians stole Game 1 on the road only to cough up two in a row at home. Now, the Tampa Bay Rays return to "the Trop" in an effort to clinch their third-ever World Series berth.

And, because baseball is romantic and the gods of this sport love their fair share of irony, the Rays will attempt to close out the ALCS in Game 6 with old friend Freddy Peralta toeing the rubber.

Who Brewers' World Series opponent will be is in the hands of Freddy Peralta

Peralta's 2026 season has been the most tumultuous of his career, starting with the trade that landed him with the New York Mets prior to his contract year. A disastrous tenure in Queens led to a trade deadline ticket to Tampa Bay, as the Rays doubled down on their chances to win the American League's top seed.

Peralta, of course, returned to his usually dominant ways after escaping the Mets' hellscape. He earned the AL's Pitcher of the Month award for September after allowing just three earned runs over his final six regular-season starts, recording a 0.79 ERA that was reminiscent of his peak days in Milwaukee.

Perhaps more impressively is the work he's done in the postseason, which was never his forte with the Brewers (4.32 ERA over 33⅓ innings). He's made two brilliant starts this October plus a key relief appearance in the sixth inning of Game 4 of the ALCS, allowing just one run over 11⅓ frames along the way.

As such, the Rays should be feeling pretty good about their chances tonight with the righty on the bump, especially since Peralta held the Guardians scoreless over six innings in his Game 2 start. Without the customary travel day between Games 5 and 6 due to a weather postponement over the weekend, their bullpen -- which has relied heavily on its high-leverage relievers the past two days -- is more fatigued than usual. Thus, expect Peralta to have a long leash if things are going well early.

If the Rays do clinch tonight, the Brewers can expect to see their ex-ace in Game 2 of the World Series over the weekend. If not, everything will come down to a winner-takes-all Game 7 tomorrow, with the winner traveling to Milwaukee to start the Fall Classic this Friday.

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