MILWAUKEE – For the better part of three weeks, the Rays have been running wild through October. All 11 of their stolen-base attempts heading into the World Series had succeeded, giving them no reason to slow down.
Then they met William Contreras.
The Brewers’ catcher set up a Tampa Bay speed trap with a pair of inning-ending caught stealings, helping Milwaukee secure a 3-2 victory in Friday night’s Game 1 of the Fall Classic at American Family Field.
“The two runners I was able to throw out today meant a lot in the game, and could have been a big difference in the game,” Contreras said. “What I was able to do defensively today, I think, means a little bit more to me.”
With two outs in the fifth inning and Yandy Díaz at the plate, Victor Mesa Jr. took off for third base on a 103 mph Jacob Misiorowski fastball – the right-hander’s final pitch of the evening, it turned out.
As the pitch sailed high out of the zone, Contreras sprang out of his crouch and fired a seed to third base, where David Hamilton applied the tag on Mesa’s left cleat.
“I'm always trying to make something happen,” Mesa said. “Obviously, it’s easy to say now, but it was not the best move. I understand that it was not the smartest move, so I’ll learn from that.”
Rays manager Kevin Cash said Mesa was “trying … to put a little pressure on the defense, and it didn’t work in our favor.”
An inning later, Contreras struck again. With Abner Uribe on the mound for Milwaukee to protect a 2-1 lead, Díaz grounded out before Jonathan Aranda singled. Chandler Simpson couldn’t hold his swing on a full-count 89.9 mph slider and, with Aranda in motion, Contreras delivered a throw to the right side of the second-base bag, giving shortstop Cooper Pratt plenty of time to apply his tag and end the inning.
“That’s on me, ultimately,” Cash said. “[We have] so much trust in Chandler putting the ball in play. But [Uribe] had a pretty nasty pitch.”
Contreras’ ability to control the running game came as no surprise to the Rays. Contreras caught 25 potential basestealers during the regular season, second in the Majors behind Marlins rookie Joe Mack (26).
Simpson said Contreras is a “great catcher,” acknowledging that the Rays must be selective about their opportunities.
“We talked about that coming in, and we definitely have to be conscious of it for sure moving forward,” Simpson said.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy is pleased to see Contreras shining on the game’s biggest stage.
“This guy has been incredible, and he does both sides of the ball,” Murphy said. “He's incredible. That's all I could tell you. He's incredible. We wouldn't be in the position we're in without Contreras.”
But the Rays wouldn’t be here without their running game, either. Simpson insisted that two costly outs wouldn’t cause Tampa Bay to abandon one of its greatest strengths.
“We can’t run away from that, because that’s who we are,” Simpson said. “Just because we’ve gotten stopped a couple of times on the basepaths, we can’t shy away from that.”
It’s a point the Rays proved in the ninth inning, when Simpson and Jorge Mateo combined for a successful double steal on Contreras.
“It doesn’t matter who’s behind home plate – I think we’re hunting the next chance,” Mesa said.
And if the Rays intend to keep running, Contreras sure sounds like he’s ready to keep throwing.
“It's a part of their game, and I think they should stick to it,” Contreras said.