Fri, Oct. 23 · 1 game · Stat Lab #30: Openers and bulk relievers · 6-min read
Press time 10:51 CEST · Final 1/1 · Statcast: posted
- Last night: 1 final
- Game of the Night: Rays 2, Brewers 3 · Drama 2.40 ★★★
- World Series: TB-MIL: Brewers lead 1-0
- Tonight: 1 game · first pitch Sun 02:00 CEST
- Stat Lab #30: Openers and bulk relievers
- Jump to: Glance · Tonight · Scoreboard · Bracket · Game of the Night · Performers · Statcast · Stat Lab · Wire · World · Web · Terms · Sources
Last Night at a Glance
- World Series Game 1: Rays 2, Brewers 3 · Brewers lead 1-0
Tonight (CEST)
Sat, Oct. 24 · 1 game · none before 23:00 CEST · starters as of 10:51 CEST
| Matchup | Start CEST (ET) | Series | Away SP | Home SP | Stakes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TB 98-64 @ MIL 103-59 | Sun 02:00 (8:00 p.m.) | WS G2 of 7 MIL leads 1-0 | Drew Rasmussen 2.67 · 2.81 · 21.2% · 172.0 | Logan Henderson 2.47 · 3.32 · 24.5% · 98.1 | — |
Scoreboard
| Matchup | Final | Drama | Decisions | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TB @ MIL | 2-3 | 2.40 ★★★ | W Misiorowski · L Martinez · S Megill | Box · Savant |
The Bracket
Wild Card Series (best of three, every game at the higher seed)
- AL: White Sox at Astros: White Sox win 2-0.
- AL: Red Sox at Yankees: Yankees win 2-0.
- NL: Phillies at Braves: Braves win 2-1.
- NL: Cubs at Padres: Padres win 2-0.
Division Series (best of five)
- AL: Yankees at Rays: Rays win 3-0.
- AL: White Sox at Guardians: Guardians win 3-2.
- NL: Padres at Brewers: Brewers win 3-1.
- NL: Braves at Dodgers: Dodgers win 3-1.
Championship Series (best of seven)
- AL: Guardians at Rays: Rays win 4-2.
- NL: Dodgers at Brewers: Brewers win 4-0.
World Series (best of seven)
- Rays at Brewers: Brewers lead 1-0 · Game 2: Sun, Oct. 25, 02:00 CEST (8:00 p.m. ET) · history: up 1-0 in a best-of-seven, 127 of 197 won the series.
Game of the Night: Rays 2, Brewers 3
- Drama Index 2.40 ★★★ · 0 lead changes · peak leverage 7.26 (top 9th)
- In history: 362nd most dramatic of 707 World Series games since 1903 (Retrosheet) · The most dramatic World Series games
- Top WPA: Jacob Misiorowski +0.17 (pitcher) · Jonathan Aranda +0.16 (batter) · Trevor Megill +0.14 (pitcher)
- Bottom WPA: Jonny DeLuca -0.28 (batter) · Yandy Díaz -0.15 (batter) · Liam Hicks -0.15 (batter)
Watch: condensed game, 26 min · recap, 6 min (MLB.com)
| Inning | Matchup | Result | Win probability | WPA | LI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 9th | Jonny DeLuca vs. Trevor Megill | Strikeout | TB 20% → 0% | -0.20 | 7.26 |
| Bot 1st | Christian Yelich vs. Nick Martinez | Triple | MIL 55% → 69% | +0.14 | 1.20 |
| Top 4th | Junior Caminero vs. Jacob Misiorowski | Double | TB 27% → 37% | +0.10 | 1.46 |
Top Performers
| Starter | Game | IP | H | R (ER) | BB | K | Pitches | GSc |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacob Misiorowski | MIL vs. TB | 5.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 78 | 60 |
| Nick Martinez | TB @ MIL | 5.0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 73 | 59 |
| Batter | Team | Line | WPA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jonathan Aranda | TB | 3-for-3, BB | +0.16 |
| Jackson Chourio | MIL | 2-for-4, 1 RBI | +0.09 |
| Christian Yelich | MIL | 1-for-4, 3B, 1 RBI | +0.08 |
| William Contreras | MIL | 2-for-3, 1 RBI, BB | +0.06 |
| Junior Caminero | TB | 1-for-3, 2B, BB | +0.01 |
Statcast Corner
| Category | Player | Detail | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fastest pitch | Jacob Misiorowski (MIL) | 103.5 mph (167 km/h) four-seamer to Yandy Díaz | TB @ MIL, top 1 |
| Hardest-hit ball | Junior Caminero (TB) | 112.7 mph (181 km/h) double off Jacob Misiorowski | TB @ MIL, top 4 |
| Unluckiest out | Yandy Díaz (TB) | line drive out, xBA .654, 101.7 mph (164 km/h), caught by 2B Brice Turang | TB @ MIL, top 3 |
Stat Lab · Lesson 30: Openers and bulk relievers
Pitchers who only start face 22.8 batters per start this season. Two trips through a nine-man lineup make 18, so a typical start ends partway into the third trip. Jose Quintana (Rockies) averages 19.3. Some teams go further and hand the first inning to a reliever.
The idea. An opener is a reliever who starts the game and pitches an inning or so, usually against the top of the lineup, before a “bulk” pitcher comes in and takes most of the innings. The 2018 Rays made it popular. The logic is about who bats most: the top of the order comes up most often, and hitters do better each time they see the same pitcher in a game (the times-through-the-order penalty). If the bulk pitcher starts against the middle of the order, he meets the top hitters fewer times, and later in his outing.
The math. 212 batters ÷ 11 starts = 19.3 per start, 3.5 fewer than the 22.8 of all 99 pitchers with 10 or more starts and no relief work. Two trips through the order make 18 batters, and the leadoff man comes up a third time as the 19th, so his average start ends right around that third look.
The scale. Across the 99 pitchers who only start, a start averages 22.8 batters, about five into the third trip. Jose Quintana at 19.3 sits well short of that. The opener takes the same idea further: short outings planned from the first pitch.
What it doesn’t tell you:
- The box score still lists the opener as the starting pitcher, which muddies starter stats such as innings per start.
- It takes arms: an opener game can use many relievers, and a 26-man roster may hold at most 13 pitchers.
- Not every short start is an opener. Injuries, blowups and pitchers building back up from an injury look much the same on the page, and the numbers alone cannot say why Jose Quintana’s starts have been short.
Try it. Check tonight’s probable pitchers. If a team lists a reliever as its starter, guess who the bulk pitcher will be, then watch which spot in the batting order he faces first.
Go deeper: MLB Glossary: opener · MLB Glossary: starting pitcher · MLB Glossary: innings pitched
Check yourself
- Q1. A bulk pitcher enters with the fourth batter of the game at the plate. Which batter of the game gives him his third look at the leadoff man?
- Q2. How many batters make two full trips through a lineup, and who starts the third trip?
- Q3. Why isn’t every short start an opener?
Show answers
- A1. The 28th, his own 25th. The leadoff man bats as the 1st, 10th, 19th and 28th batter of the game.
- A2. 18. The 19th batter, the leadoff man, starts the third trip.
- A3. A starter can leave early because he is hurt, hit hard or still building up his pitch count. An opener’s short outing is planned before the game.
Transaction Wire
- Brewers: RHP Brandon Woodruff back from the 60-day IL (1.2 WAR this season)
- Brewers: status change for RHP Chad Patrick
- Rays: status change for LHP Garrett Cleavinger
More moves (1)
- Rays: status change for RHP Brody Hopkins
Around the World
- Dominican Winter League: Aguilas 5, Leones 9 ★★ · Tigres 3, Estrellas 8 ★★
- Venezuelan Winter League: Aguilas 8, Cardenales 11 ★★★★★ · Tiburones 2, Bravos 10 ★★ · Leones 1, Tigres 7 ★★ · Caribes 13, Navegantes 7 ★
- Mexican Pacific League: Nayarit 4, Navojoa 5 (10, walk-off) ★★★★★ · Hermosillo 7, Mexicali 5 ★★ · Los Mochis 0, Obregon 7 (shutout) ★ · Guasave 3, Culiacan 6 ★ · Jalisco 9, Mazatlan 1 ★
Around the Web
Last Night’s Games
- Rays 2, Brewers 3 — None of Rays’ best relievers pitched in Game 1 — and that could be a good thing (MLB.com)
News
- It took all of 1 pitch for a World Series record — MLB.com
- With lockout looming, the World Series could be Major League Baseball’s last games for a while — AP via NBC Sports
- Bold predictions for the 2026 World Series: Jackson Chourio makes history, a no-hitter, an ABS ending and more — CBS Sports
- Jacob Misiorowski sets World Series velocity record with first pitch of Game 1 — The Athletic (subscription)
Transactions & Rumors
- Offseason Outlook: New York Yankees — MLB Trade Rumors
- Yankees Notes: Boone, Judge, Massey — MLB Trade Rumors
Analysis · Listen (7)
Analysis
- The First Cut Is the Deepest: Buzzsaw Brewers Take Game 1 — FanGraphs
- Do the Red Sox Need to Extend Adley Rutschman This Winter? — Just Baseball
- Once More After the Celebration — Baseball Prospectus (subscription)
- Cup of Coffee: October 23, 2026 — Cup of Coffee (subscription)
Listen
- Brewers’ win in Game 1 worth the 44-year wait — MLB Morning Lineup · 15 min
- WORLD SERIES PREVIEW – Kevin Weiss and Chuck Freimund Join Sully About The World Series — Locked On MLB · 32 min
- Brewers hold on to win World Series Game 1, Rays turn to Drew Rasmussen for Game 2 — Baseball Bar-B-Cast · 46 min
Terms in This Post
Drama Index · Win Probability Added (WPA) · Hard-Hit Rate (HardHit%) · Barrel · every term in the Glossary
Sources & Notes
Built automatically from MLB Stats API and Baseball Savant data; numbers through Oct. 23, 2026, with FIP, xFIP, WAR and wRC+ up to a day behind. Highlight videos link to MLB.com. The information used here was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted by Retrosheet. Interested parties may contact Retrosheet at “www.retrosheet.org”. How this site works