Rays’ bullpen shuts down Brewers in 12 innings, earn 4-3 Game 4 win at Tropicana Field

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

ST. PETERSBURG — The Tampa Bay Rays kept their World Series season alive in gritty fashion on Tuesday, using a bullpen performance that carried for eight innings to defeat the Milwaukee Brewers 4-3 in 12 innings in Game 4 at Tropicana Field. After falling in their first two games by one run and suffering a rough loss upon returning to Florida, the Rays’ relief group held the Brewers long enough to send the series forward for another day.

Bryan Baker anchored the late innings for Tampa Bay and said he expected his team to have more left, a belief that defined the way the bullpen steadied the game. Baker and Tampa Bay’s relief group combined for the key stretch of one-run ball, extending the Rays’ postseason run as the Brewers’ offense repeatedly ran into late-game outs.

Griffin Jax delivered four-plus innings for the Rays, allowing a run that came on David Hamilton’s game-tying home run. The homer arrived on Jax’s 74th and final pitch in the fifth inning, tying the score at 3. Kevin Kelly then worked around trouble in the fifth, prompting manager Kevin Cash to call on Nick Martinez from the bullpen after Martinez had taken the loss in Game 1 at Milwaukee.

Martinez, who said he expected to pitch at some point during the World Series, was brought in after Kelly navigated a walk in the fifth. Martinez conceded a Cooper Pratt single over two otherwise clean innings, keeping Tampa Bay in position as the game continued to tighten late. With Tampa Bay facing elimination, Martinez and the rest of the bullpen operated in an all-hands-on-deck rhythm for the Rays, who treated Game 4 as a must-win.

Martinez credited the group’s resilience and team identity for the ability to keep pushing through high-leverage moments. He also noted that the pitching staff’s roles were not limited to a single player, emphasizing that anyone on the roster could emerge as the difference in a moment. From the mound to the dugout, the Rays leaned into that depth as the contest stretched into extras.

Baker then took over after receiving ball to the bullpen. In the regular season, Baker led Major League Baseball with 41 saves, though the World Series represented a new stage for him beyond his previous opportunities. According to Cash, Baker’s recent usage had generally been limited to one inning, making the extra rest after Baker last appeared in the American League Championship Series clincher against Cleveland relevant to how long he could stay effective. Cash said Baker’s two innings were very helpful for Tampa Bay’s ability to keep the margin tight.

Baker’s longest appearance of the season had reached 1 2/3 innings prior to Game 4, and in Tuesday’s World Series outing he recorded six outs. After an eighth inning that Cash described as a breezy eight-pitch stretch, Baker worked through the ninth inning in an eventful sequence. Pratt singled, and Garrett Mitchell followed with a deep fly to left field that Chandler Simpson tracked for a leaping catch against the wall, preserving the tie.

From there, a pivotal base-running moment nearly shifted the game. Pratt was caught stealing at second base on a play that was overturned after review. Baker described the pause while the call was reviewed, saying he felt confident by the time the replay process reached later shows.

As the game moved into extra innings, Tyler Wells set down the Brewers in order during the 10th. In the 11th, Wells recorded the first two outs before Cash turned to left-hander Cam Booser. Booser issued a walk but then struck out Sal Frelick swinging to end the frame, preventing Milwaukee from turning momentum into a late lead.

The Rays’ bullpen also carried that pressure into the 11th, where Booser arrived after a challenging day. Booser said he was hoping to make amends after a rough outing the prior day, and he emphasized how important it felt to help the team win any way he could. Catcher Liam Hicks supported Booser’s response publicly, saying he had no doubt that Booser would bounce back and pointing to his focus and season-long reputation.

The game’s lone blemish on Tampa Bay’s pitching came late in the form of Pratt’s 12th-inning homer off Ian Seymour. That long ball created the moment that threatened to end the Rays’ season, turning the emotional weight of the inning even heavier as Tampa Bay needed an immediate response in the home half.

But the Rays answered before the Brewers could complete the comeback. In the bottom of the 12th, Tampa Bay scored on a walk-off hit to right field by Ben Williamson, sending the game into a finish that extended the Rays’ season for another day. Baker reflected on the way Tampa Bay’s roster depth and versatility mattered in that moment, describing the win as an encapsulation of the team’s character.

The Rays’ Game 4 victory also highlighted the way they managed pitching throughout the World Series’s first four games, combining multi-inning efforts from key relievers with timely execution in the late innings. Cash’s deployment decisions—bringing on Martinez after trouble and then turning to Booser in the 11th—allowed Tampa Bay to absorb runs and still control the game’s rhythm until the walk-off.

With the Rays taking the 4-3 win in 12 innings, Tampa Bay’s bullpen will remain central to how the series progresses, particularly after a night when multiple pitchers contributed to keeping the margin within reach. Baker summed up the team’s identity in the aftermath, saying the Rays are never out of the fight and that the roster’s resilience and depth helped define how Game 4 ended at Tropicana Field.