The team owners have proposed changing the regular-season format in the new CBA; before that, MLB gets to enjoy one last World Series. With two small-market teams, the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays, clashing for their first-ever titles, the 2026 Fall Classic is bound for the history books. The Brewers have already secured Game 1, with a dramatic 3-2 win.

But before the World Series kicked off at American Family Field in Wisconsin, thousands of miles away in India, we spoke to four MLB legends. They were in the country for the MLBx Mumbai event, and EssentiallySports made sure to hear their predictions on who would take the Commissioner’s Trophy home. While Adrian Gonzalez, Jake Arrieta, and Nick Swisher happily picked their favorites, Jonny Gomes found the task quite daunting.

“With the World Series right now, I really feel like it’s going to go seven games. I think it’s two very equally matched teams,” Adrian Gonzalez, who came to Mumbai to represent the Los Angeles Dodgers, told EssentiallySports.

“…I really think it’s going to go seven games, and when any series goes seven games, you need that one pitcher to stand out. For me, the best pitcher in the series is Jacob Misiorowski. So for me, I think Milwaukee will win in seven games.”

Last season, the Toronto Blue Jays and the Los Angeles Dodgers set a benchmark for what a 7-game-long World Series could look like. From unpredictable to nerve-wracking and exciting, it checked all the boxes. The Blue Jays were only a few outs away from securing the championship before the Dodgers turned the tables in the 11-inning nail-biter. While Gonzalez thinks the Brewers and the Rays are evenly matched enough to deliver a seven-game show, the former player has kept the Brewers ahead, and he has also explained why.

To win the World Series, you need the MVP, the X-factor on the team. The Dodgers had Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Gonzalez believes the Brewers have their own MVP in Jacob Misiorowski. If it comes down to seven games, Adrian Gonzalez sees the right-handed flamethrower saving the day for the Brewers. After starting in Game 1 and then in Game 4 or 5, Misiorowski could throw out of the bullpen in the series finale if the Brewers need him.

Notably, Misiorowski just made World Series history with his first pitch on Friday night. The four-seamer to Yandy Diaz, at 103.5 mph per Statcast, became the fastest pitch ever thrown in a World Series game.

Also, Adrian Gonzalez might be onto something when he predicted the Brewers as the potential winners. Why? Because, according to the Associated Press, the Game 1 winner has won the World Series 62.8% of the time.

While Misiorowski stole the spotlight with a stellar 1.80 ERA and 252 strikeouts in the regular season, Drew Rasmussen of the Rays secured the second-highest number of wins in the American League. Rasmussen’s 7-inning, one-run outing in ALCS Game 5 was also crucial to the Rays’ success. And former World Series champion Nick Swisher is rooting for the AL best, the Tampa Bay Rays.

Nick Swisher is all-in for the Rays

The Tampa Bay Rays finished the regular season 98-64, at the top of the American League, securing a postseason bye. The MLB-best Brewers won only 5 more games in the regular season. Those five games gave the Brewers the home-field advantage in the World Series, and now Milwaukee has capitalized on it. However, nothing is set in stone yet, and Nick Swisher favored his former division rivals.

“So, listen, I’m an American League guy, right? I mean, listen, I know the Rays are in our division, and we’re not supposed to like them. But that’s exactly who I’m pulling for, right? I love their style of play,” Swisher told EssentiallySports.

Crediting skipper Kevin Cash for a job well done, the former Yankees star added, “…I think that’s one of the best things you can have on a team, is knowing what each person is going to do. So, I think their pitching staff has just been absolutely lights out. Rasmussen’s been amazing. Freddy Peralta has been amazing. And the back end of their bullpen has just been electric as well. So, I’m an American League guy. I’m going for the Rays… I’m gonna go Rays in six.”

At the helm of his hometown team, Kevin Cash has led the Rays to an incredible turnaround this season. One offseason of rebuilding later, the Rays topped the AL East after finishing fourth (77-85) without a winning record in 2025.

After dominating the AL East all season, the Rays met Swisher’s former team, the New York Yankees, in the division series and absolutely crushed them. The Rays swept the Yankees, a team with a payroll multiple times higher than theirs, including a shutout and a 5-2 win in ALDS Games 1 and 2.

The Guardians put up a better fight, taking ALCS Game 1, but the new and improved Freddy Peralta helped the Rays take back the edge. He pitched in 3 of the four ALCS wins the Rays recorded. In 16.2 postseason innings, Peralta posted a dominant 1.08 ERA, including 6 scoreless innings in Game 2.

Combine the pitching power with offensive blasts from the likes of Yandy Diaz and Junior Caminero, and the Rays won’t be easy to overcome. And that’s exactly what has former Red Sox player Jonny Gomes in a dilemma. Furthermore, the two-time World Series champion is too nice to hurt any feelings. He would rather let the teams battle it out on the diamond than pick a side.

“I got buddies on both teams. You know what, I love both managers, so I personally can’t pick against anyone. So what I’m hoping for is seven games, so we can get as many games as we can,” said Gomes. “I’m going to sit back and watch.”

With Jonny Gomes refusing to pick a side, our World Series poll was tied at 1-1. So, EssentiallySports approached Jake Arrieta for his two cents on the potential champions.

Jake Arrieta puts the Brewers ahead

“I’m gonna go with the Brewers,” Arrieta told us, while representing the Chicago Cubs in Mumbai.

“I really respect the way they play the game. I like Tampa too. I think they’re the two perfect teams to be playing in the World Series. They both deserve it. I think the slight edge goes to the Brewers because of their lights-out defense and their power pitching. But it’s gonna come down to who gets the big hit at the biggest moment.”

While the likes of Misiorowski and Rasmussen can turn the trajectory of a game in the Brewers’ favor, Pat Murphy’s bullpen strategy has proven unbeatable. The Brewers bullpen, averaging 98 mph on their fastballs, has logged a 1.33 ERA over 40.2 innings this postseason. The relievers have allowed only 22 hits and 14 walks so far. Notably, they are also the only team to sweep a best-of-seven series with a reliever earning the win in all four games.

World Series Game 1 was a testament to their composure. The Brewers had initially left the field, thinking they won after a double play. But a challenge from the Rays overturned the call. Closer Trevor Megill had to come back to the mound to pitch, with the tying run in scoring position. However, the pressure failed to get the best of Megill, and the closer struck DeLuca out to secure the win.

But as Arrieta stated, ultimately it will be down to who comes out on top in the big moments.

While the World Series 2026 promises us a lot of excitement in the next few days, the championship’s significance lies beyond that. With the current CBA expiring on December 1, this World Series might become the MLBPA’s key argument against the team owners’ push for a salary cap. With the Dodgers winning back-to-back Fall Classics, the owners used a ‘lack of competitive balance’ as the reason for promoting a salary cap. But when two low-payroll teams clash in the World Series, it nullifies their argument. This season, the Brewers have a payroll of $146.2 million, while the Rays’ payroll stands at $95.6 million. We will be keeping a close eye on how the World Series affects the CBA negotiations.

However, our message for now will be: May the best team win.