Neither Tampa Bay ace Shane McClanahan nor Milwaukee's Jacob Misiorowski could hold down the opposing lineup. McClanahan lasted only four innings and allowed three Brewers runs, while Misiorowski — a PB 2-9 who isn't nearly as dominant in the game as he has been in real MLB play, with more walks and fewer strikeouts — gave up four runs in five innings.
Both teams then burned through their top four relievers, who were lockdown the rest of the way but will now be unavailable for the rematch in Tampa. The Rays escaped with a 5-3 win in the first of their four pool games.
Then came the Cubs — and an unlikely defensive breakdown by their normally outstanding infield.
In the 10th, Chandler Simpson entered as a pinch-runner and stole third. A CD (Clutch Defense) card was followed by SS, meaning Gold Glove-level shortstop Dansby Swanson had to stop a smash with the winning run at third.
Because Swanson has the game's best CD rating (CD5), he would have caught the line drive and doubled Simpson off third base on a roll of 11-48, or grabbed it on a hop and nailed Schmidt at home on 51-78. Instead, the roll was 83 — one of the rare outcomes in which the ball gets through Swanson for a single, allowing the winning run to score.
The Rays leave the Midwest with a sweep and now get chances to beat both the Brewers and Cubs again in Tampa to advance to the final three-team pool.
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