The 2026 World Series is underway at the Brewers' home ballpark, with Tampa Bay visiting Milwaukee in an 8 p.m. ET Game 1.

The pitching matchup is Nick Martinez for the Rays against fireballer Jacob Misiorowski for the Brewers, whom ESPN notes could wow the home crowd with his heat en route to a series-opening win. Both clubs entered the night four wins away from the first championship in franchise history.

Milwaukee is making its first World Series appearance since 1982, while the Rays, who went 98-64 for the best record in the American League, are chasing their own elusive first title.

ESPN published the pregame lineups for both clubs.

The Rays stacked their card with Yandy Diaz at DH, Jonathan Aranda at first, Chandler Simpson in left, Junior Caminero — the centerpiece of the Tampa Bay offense — at third, Liam Hicks catching, and Jonny DeLuca, Victor Mesa Jr., Ben Williamson and switch-hitting Taylor Walls filling out the order.

The Brewers countered with Jackson Chourio leading off in left, Jake Bauers at first, Christian Yelich at DH, William Contreras behind the plate, Brice Turang at second, Garrett Mitchell in center, Cooper Pratt at short, Sal Frelick in right and David Hamilton at third.

In an MS NOW opinion column, Christian Schneider argues the matchup is a revolution for Major League Baseball: neither franchise spends like a superpower, neither plays in a media capital, and neither got here the way most of baseball believes is required.

The Brewers won a franchise-record 103 games and swept the two-time defending champion Dodgers in the NLCS, while the Rays reached the Series on a payroll ranking 25th in baseball.

Per the column, both teams finished first and second in league batting average, were top five in stolen bases and top seven in ERA — with Milwaukee second in all of baseball in runs scored despite being tied for second-to-last in home runs.

Whichever team prevails will crown a franchise that has never won a World Series, with Milwaukee seeking its first title since 1982 and Tampa Bay its first ever.

ESPN's live blog is tracking in-game action and postgame takeaways throughout the night, with key links to how to win the World Series, a playoff MVP tracker and the full schedule.

The column in MS NOW frames the stakes beyond the trophy: both clubs built winners on contact hitting, tight defense and multidimensional players rather than home-run-heavy lineups, and a championship would vindicate that model against big-spending rivals.