Chicks Dig the… Small Ball?

Bunting, situational hitting, and productive outs—they were starting to seem like relics in modern baseball. However, the two teams competing in this World Series have revitalized those strategies.

The Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays both claimed the top seeds in their respective leagues, showcasing their strengths throughout the postseason. It’s the first time one of these franchises will emerge as World Series champions, bringing all the excitement to FOX.

The Brewers operated with the second-lowest payroll in baseball, while the Rays were not far behind at eighth. These financial constraints have led both teams to lean heavily on analytics, sometimes going against the grain of what seems to be popular in the sport.

It’s widely recognized, despite some people arguing against it, that home runs typically dominate the game. This trend has persisted since the early days. Still, the Brewers and Rays surprisingly ranked 29th and 22nd, respectively, in total home runs this season.

Instead, their success has been attributed to good, old-fashioned batting average—both teams hitting .258, which positioned them at the top in the league. When it comes to batting averages with runners in scoring position, the Rays led at .284 while the Brewers followed closely at .276.

The Rays also excelled in executing sacrifice bunts, with a total of 45, while the Brewers had 37, ranking fifth in that category. While bunting alone doesn’t guarantee success—just look at the Los Angeles Dodgers, who had a mere 23 combined sacrifices in two championship seasons—it certainly has worked wonders for these two teams.

Additionally, the Rays and Brewers topped the charts in bunt hits, with totals of 49 and 32, respectively. They also teamed up for a solid second in infield hits, trailing only the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Amid the obsession with exit velocity—hitting the ball hard has always mattered—the Rays maintained the most significant percentage of soft hits, along with the second-lowest for hard-hit balls. The Brewers sat in 12th and 18th for those metrics but ranked sixth for medium-hit percentages.

Interestingly, the Brewers tend to pull the ball less than any other team, preferring a style that favors hitting up the middle and going opposite field. They also hit ground balls more frequently than anyone else, landing them the lowest fly ball rate in the league. This stands in stark contrast to the increasing prevalence of data-driven analytics.

Strikeouts have become more acceptable in today’s baseball scene, but that’s not the case in Florida. The Rays recorded the lowest strikeout percentage this year. Meanwhile, the Brewers have actually struck out more than the majority of teams, coming in at 14th overall; they’ve particularly struggled in October.

During the National League Championship Series, the Brewers diverged from their usual playing style, posting the highest three-true-outcome percentage (home run, walk, strikeout) seen in an LCS team since 1969. They were outhit in a couple of games and consistently struck out more than the Dodgers. Their walks, unsurprisingly, were the highest in the regular season.

Despite being a bottom performer in total homers, the Brewers still managed the ninth most when there was a runner on base and recorded the highest rate of multi-run homers. The Rays have also leaned on the long ball in the playoffs, showcasing their power against teams like the New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians.

It’s essential to credit the remarkable pitching on both sides. The Brewers might just boast the best pitcher in Jacob Misiorowski, while the Rays have a knack for transforming players into effective pitching options. This postseason, Brewers pitchers have achieved a stellar 2.03 ERA, while the Rays hold an impressive 2.59. Opposing batters have struggled as well, hitting just .183 and .201 against them, respectively, while both teams have allowed fewer than one homer a game.

So here we are—small ball and elite pitching have propelled these underdog teams to the World Series. Yet, what’s particularly evident this October is their ability to adapt; they can win in various ways, even leaning into the “boom or bust” approach when needed. Now, the exciting question remains: which style will ultimately triumph?

The action kicks off Friday in Milwaukee at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.