NEW YORK (AP) — A.J. Ewing hit his first big league home run to spark a comeback for the New York Mets, who completed a three-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers with a 9-4 win on Thursday.
Ewing, who was promoted prior to the series opener Tuesday, hit a 405-foot shot off Keider Montero (2-3) leading off the third. He was 3 for 9 with three RBIs and four walks against the Tigers as the Mets recorded their first sweep since taking three straight from the Philadelphia Phillies in August.
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Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch argues with an umpire during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Detroit Tigers center fielder Wenceel Perez (46) fails to catch a two-run home run ball hit by New York Mets' Brett Baty during the fourth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Mets starting pitcher Nolan McLean (26) reacts during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Mets designated hitter Juan Soto (22) hits a home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Mets' A.J. Ewing (9) celebrates in the dugout with teammates after hitting a home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Brett Baty hit a two-run homer in the fourth and Juan Soto laced a tie-breaking RBI single off Tyler Holton in the fifth, one pitch before Mark Vientos’ two-run shot.
Hayden Senger added a safety squeeze in the sixth and Soto and Marcus Semien went deep in the seventh and eighth.
Nolan McLean (2-2) gave up Gage Workman’s three-run homer in the first but lasted seven innings as he ended his winless streak at six starts. He allowed six hits, walked three and struck out seven.
Dillon Dingler homered in the eighth for Detroit.
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch was ejected after a replay review confirmed Workman was thrown out at third trying to advance on Zach McKinstry’s bloop single in the fourth — one of four times a replay review didn’t benefit the Tigers.
Baty’s blast stood upon a crew chief review while the Mets successfully challenged a safe call on McLean’s pickoff of Wenceel Pérez in the fifth as well as a caught stealing call on Carson Benge just before Soto’s tie-breaking hit.
Montero gave up four runs and struck out two in 4 2/3 innings.
Detroit: RHP Ty Madden (0-0, 2.45 ERA) pitches against the Toronto Blue Jays and RHP Trey Yesavage (1-1, 0.68 ERA) on Friday at home.
New York: RHP Clay Holmes (4-3, 1.86 ERA) pitches in the Subway Series against RHP Cam Schlittler (5-1, 1.35 ERA) and the New York Yankees.
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Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch argues with an umpire during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
Detroit Tigers center fielder Wenceel Perez (46) fails to catch a two-run home run ball hit by New York Mets' Brett Baty during the fourth inning of a baseball game, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Mets starting pitcher Nolan McLean (26) reacts during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Mets designated hitter Juan Soto (22) hits a home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
New York Mets' A.J. Ewing (9) celebrates in the dugout with teammates after hitting a home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Thursday, May 14, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Sal Frelick tied the score with his first home run in three months, Cooper Pratt hit a go-ahead single in the seventh inning and the Milwaukee Brewers stunned the Tampa Bay Rays 5-4 on Saturday night for a 2-0 World Series lead by overcoming a four-run deficit for the second time in the postseason.
Tampa Bay, which won the AL pennant by forcing opponents into mistakes, committed one error, made two other misplays that could have been charged as errors and had a runner thrown out at the plate.
Down 4-0 in the first inning, Milwaukee rallied for its seventh comeback win of this postseason. The Brewers also rebounded from a 4-0 deficit to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-4 in Game 4 of the NL Championship Series, completing a four-game sweep.
After losing Friday’s opener 3-2, the Rays burst ahead against rookie Logan Henderson but the Brewers started to claw back with two runs in the bottom half against Tampa Bay ace Drew Rasmussen.
David Hamilton cut the deficit to 4-3 with a run-scoring grounder in the fourth and Frelick capped a nine-pitch at-bat against Ian Seymour in the sixth by driving a fastball over the center-field fence.
Frelick had gone 103 plate appearances without a home run since his July 11 drive off Pittsburgh’s Braxton Ashcraft and had not gone deep against a lefty pitcher since opening day against Tyler Gilbert of the Chicago White Sox. Frelick sped around the bases in 18.72 seconds, half the time of some theatrical trots this postseason.
Screaming fans at the second game of Milwaukee’s first World Series since 1982 were fired up during the seventh-inning stretch, dancing to the “Beer Barrel Polka” played by Mike Schneider, an accordionist from Clinton, Wisconsin.
Brice Turang doubled against losing pitcher Tyler Wells on the second pitch of the bottom half, advanced on Garrett Mitchell’s flyout to right and scored when Pratt, a 22-year-old who debuted in June, looped a sinker from Kevin Kelly into short right field.
Abner Uribe pitched 1 1/3 hitless innings for the win.
Jonny DeLuca doubled off Aaron Ashby starting the ninth, then Victor Mesa Jr. struck out when he couldn’t check his swing. Pinch-hitter Ben Williamson’s groundout advanced the runner and Yandy Díaz struck out when he couldn’t check his swing on a full-count pitch.
Ashby has three saves in the postseason while not allowing a run.
Milwaukee won its seventh straight game, becoming the fifth team to twice overcome four-run deficits for victories in a single postseason and the first since Philadelphia in 2022.
Game 3 of the matchup between teams seeking their first title is Monday night at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, where the Brewers last played in 2023.
Of the 57 previous teams to take 2-0 World Series leads, 46 claimed the championship.
Tampa Bay took a 4-2 lead in the highest-scoring Series first inning since 1993’s Game 4 as teams combined for seven hits, tying the most in an opening frame.
Still, Milwaukee improved to 13-0 in games started by Henderson, dating to his 2025 debut. He followed Jacob Misiorowski in the Brewers’ rotation, the first time teammates 24 or younger started the first two games of the Series since Cincinnati’s Gary Nolan and Ross Grimsley in 1972.
Henderson started on 11 days’ rest and struggled as the Rays fouled off 13 of 35 pitches in the first. He gave up four runs — three earned — in three innings.
Given an extra day of rest, Rasmussen allowed three runs and six hits over 3 2/3 innings in his shortest start since July 9.
Pratt made his fourth error of the postseason at shortstop, the Brewers’ ninth in 10 games, bouncing his throw past first baseman Jake Bauers on a leadoff grounder by Díaz. Chandler Simpson and Junior Caminero followed with RBI singles, and Liam Hicks hit a two-run homer.
Jackson Chourio and Bauers started the bottom half with singles and first baseman Jonathan Aranda allowed Contreras’ one-out foul pop to bounce out of his mitt near netting in front of the seats.
With Bauers running on a full-count pitch, Contreras bounced an RBI single to the left of second baseman Richie Palacios, who had taken a step toward the base. Mitchell’s two-out single cut the deficit to 4-2.
Hamilton hit an RBI grounder in the fourth that bounced under Aranda’s legs for an error.
Chourio threw out Hicks from left for the final out of the sixth when third base coach Brady Williams waved the slow-footed catcher to try to score from second on Mesa’s single.
Rays RHP Freddy Peralta, who became a two-time All-Star when he pitched for the Brewers from 2018-25, starts Game 3. He was the AL Championship Series MVP and is 2-0 with a 1.08 ERA in three postseason starts and one relief appearance. He will be opposed by Brewers LHP Robert Gasser, who allowed one run over nine innings in his first two postseason starts.
See AP’s full MLB coverage here
Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Cooper Pratt runs on his RBI base hit during the seventh inning of Game 2 of baseball's World Series, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Milwaukee, between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Milwaukee Brewers' Cooper Pratt celebrates a RBI-single during the seventh inning of Game 2 of baseball's World Series, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Milwaukee, between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Milwaukee Brewers' Sal Frelick celebrates his home run during the sixth inning of Game 2 of baseball's World Series, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Milwaukee, between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays. (AP Photo/Kayla Wolf)
Milwaukee Brewers' Sal Frelick celebrates his home run during the sixth inning of Game 2 of baseball's World Series, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Milwaukee, between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
Milwaukee Brewers' Sal Frelick watches his home run during the sixth inning of Game 2 of baseball's World Series, Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026, in Milwaukee, between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
