Rays Escape Elimination After 12th-Inning Comeback Against Brewers

The Tampa Bay Rays avoided World Series elimination by forcing a Game 5 in a 4-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night at Tropicana Field. The win snapped an eight-game winning streak for Milwaukee, which had been aiming to become the second team to sweep both the League Championship Series and the World Series.

Cooper Pratt hit a tiebreaking home run in the top of the 12th inning off Ian Seymour. The 22-year-old rookie drove a slider into the left-field seats for his fourth hit of the game. Pratt had previously tied the score at 1 with an RBI double in the second inning and became the first rookie to hit an extra-inning home run in the World Series.

The Rays scored their final three runs in the bottom of the 12th inning after a throwing error by Milwaukee third baseman Joey Ortiz. Junior Caminero grounded into the play, and Ortiz misfired his throw to first base. Liam Hicks then singled off rookie left-hander Shane Drohan to load the bases. Milwaukee switched to an infield defense with the runners in scoring position.

Jonny DeLuca singled to center field, driving in pinch-runner Cedric Mullins to tie the game at 3. Pinch-hitter Ben Williamson, batting for Victor Mesa Jr., then hit a chopper over first baseman Jake Bauers to win the game. Williamson had batted 1 for 15 in the postseason prior to this at-bat. Rays manager Kevin Cash said he instructed Williamson to swing hard, calling it a pretty big swing.

Tampa Bay became the fourth team in World Series history to avoid elimination with an extra-inning comeback, according to OptaSTATS. The previous three teams to achieve this feat all went on to win the championship: the 1912 Red Sox, the 1986 Mets, and the 2011 Cardinals. Tampa Bay also became just the fifth team in 26 instances to win Game 4 after falling behind 3-0 in the series. The only team to trail 3-0 in a best-of-seven postseason series and win the championship was the Boston Red Sox against the New York Yankees in 2004.

Caminero left the game with an injury to his left foot and was replaced at third base by Mullins. The All-Star slugger said he would definitely play in Wednesday's Game 5. Cash added that he would ensure Caminero played, even if it meant playing on one leg. Game 5 is scheduled for Wednesday night at Tropicana Field. Milwaukee Cy Young Award favorite Jacob Misiorowski is expected to start for the Brewers, while Cash had not yet decided on his starter.

Milwaukee's David Hamilton also homered in the loss. He drove an 0-2 fastball from Griffin Jax into the right-field seats for his second home run of the postseason. Jackson Chourio recorded a single and a double, improving to 10 for 20 in the series. Brewers manager Pat Murphy praised Pratt for responding to pressure. Christian Yelich, the Brewers' captain, said the team expected the series to be difficult and that they understand what is required to win a championship.