The Tampa Bay Rays are hosting World Series games at Tropicana Field for the first time since 2008, and as always, the stadium itself continues to be a topic of discussion.
Perhaps as a result of the 2-0 series lead Milwaukee brought into game three, the crowd before Monday night’s game contained a shockingly high percentage of Brewers fans. Like at American Family Field, the catwalk and roof support systems are in play, which, as we saw during the NLDS between Milwaukee and the San Diego Padres, can impact the outcome.
But it’s not just the support systems that have drawn the ire of fans and opposing players, it’s the roof itself. After Hurricane Milton destroyed much of the stadium covering in 2004, the rebuilt roof was replaced with a much brighter version. And opposing players don’t like it. Really don’t like it.
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Brewers star closer Trevor Megill made it a point of contention on the off-day before game three, giving reporters gathered around batting practice a very strong piece of his mind.
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“Whoever decided to make the roof the same g–damn color as the baseball is a f—ing idiot,” he said, per Dario Melendez.
He’s right, too. Though it’s hard to say, given the level of gamesmanship baseball teams are capable of, whether it was an oversight or a purposeful design choice from Tampa to add a marginal bit of help to their home field advantage. Particularly with their often anemic attendance.
Melendez, who works for WISN 12, also reported that the Brewers spent a significant amount of time practicing how to play fly balls that take off into the roof background, as well as playing ricochet’s off the support system. Smart, considering they know from direct, recent experience just how easy it is for the roof to come into play.
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Fortunately for the Brewers, they didn’t have to worry too much about dealing with the confusing system in game three. Starting pitcher Robert Gasser became the first lefty to go six shutout innings while facing the minimum number of opposing batters in a World Series game since legendary Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax.
Tampa managed just one hit through eight innings before grabbing a run in the ninth on a Yandy Diaz double to narrow the score to 10-1. The dominant win pushed them one step closer to securing the franchise’s first-ever World Series championship and finally paying off their years of recent regular season success. And they’d do it by becoming the first team in history to sweep both the NLCS and World Series. While winning nine straight games and finishing 11-1 in the playoffs. A remarkable superteam.
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Milwaukee will send Dustin May to the mound on Tuesday night for game four, while Tampa will counter with bulk pitcher Griffin Jax, hoping to extend their season til Thursday night. Given how the series has gone so far, they might need some help from that roof. Or a lot of help.
