MILWAUKEE (Interstat) — Christian Yelich tripled and scored during a two-run first inning, Jackson Chourio delivered a run-scoring single in the seventh, and the Milwaukee Brewers held off the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 on Friday night in Game 1 of the World Series at American Family Field. Milwaukee leads the series 1-0. The Brewers finished with eight hits to Tampa Bay’s seven and improved to 111-60. The Rays fell to 105-67. A crowd of 43,250 watched the game, which lasted 3 hours, 9 minutes.

Jacob Misiorowski gave Milwaukee a strong start and was the Brewers’ top performer. He allowed one earned run on four hits over five innings, walked one and struck out three while improving to 17-5. Misiorowski worked around a first-inning single and kept Tampa Bay off the scoreboard until the middle innings. Milwaukee’s bullpen then bridged the gap to Trevor Megill, who earned his 35th save despite allowing one earned run on two hits and a walk in the ninth.

Milwaukee opened the scoring in the bottom of the first. Jackson Chourio led off with a single to right, and after Jake Bauers flew out, Yelich lined a triple to center that scored Chourio. William Contreras followed with a single to left that scored Yelich, giving the Brewers a 2-0 lead. Tampa Bay starter Nick Martinez settled in after that, retiring the side in order in the third and working out of trouble in the fourth, but the early two-run cushion held up.

Tampa Bay’s best early chance came in the first. Jonathan Aranda singled and Chandler Simpson reached on a soft ground ball, but Junior Caminero lined into a double play from David Hamilton to Brice Turang, ending the threat. Milwaukee turned another key defensive play in the fifth when Victor Mesa Jr. singled and was caught stealing third by Contreras and Hamilton. In the sixth, Aranda singled but was caught stealing second by Contreras, with Cooper Pratt applying the tag. Those outs kept Tampa Bay from building sustained rallies.

Tampa Bay cut the deficit in the fourth. Aranda walked, moved to third on Caminero’s sharp double to center, and scored when Liam Hicks grounded out to first. Martinez finished with five innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits while striking out five. He fell to 16-7. Tampa Bay’s bullpen kept the game close, with Steven Matz, Cole Sulser and Garrett Cleavinger combining to limit further damage, though Kevin Kelly allowed three hits while recording one out in the seventh.

The Brewers added an insurance run in the seventh. Pratt walked, moved to second on Hamilton’s groundout and scored on Chourio’s single to right. That run became important when Tampa Bay mounted a final rally. Aaron Ashby and Abner Uribe helped protect the lead with scoreless relief work. Ashby pitched 1 2/3 hitless innings and struck out three, while Uribe allowed one hit over 1 1/3 scoreless innings and struck out two. Milwaukee’s defense also helped. Contreras threw out Aranda attempting to steal second in the sixth, and Mesa was caught stealing third in the fifth.

Tampa Bay threatened in the ninth. Yandy Diaz grounded out before Aranda and Simpson singled and Caminero walked to load the bases. Hicks then grounded into a play initially ruled a game-ending double play. A replay review overturned the force play, allowing Jorge Mateo to score and keeping the inning alive. Megill responded by striking out Jonny DeLuca for the final out with two runners in scoring position. The ninth-inning sequence capped a tense finish and denied Tampa Bay a chance to steal Game 1.

Yelich finished 1 for 4 with an RBI and a run scored. Contreras had a run-scoring single in the first. Chourio scored Milwaukee’s first run and drove in the seventh-inning run. Misiorowski, Ashby, Uribe and Megill combined to hold Tampa Bay to two runs. The Brewers finished with eight hits, while the Rays had seven. The game drew 43,250 and took 3 hours, 9 minutes.

Misiorowski’s line included four hits, one earned run, one walk and three strikeouts over five innings. Martinez allowed five hits and two earned runs, walked none and struck out five. Yelich’s first-inning triple was the loudest swing of Milwaukee’s early attack. Chourio finished with a run and an RBI. Contreras drove in the Brewers’ second run. The Rays’ runs came on Hicks’ groundouts in the fourth and ninth.

Before the game, Hall of Famer Robin Yount threw out the ceremonial first pitch. He wore Bob Uecker’s sport coat before removing it to reveal a Ueck jersey. The Brewers then produced the kind of early offense that gave the home crowd plenty to cheer. Milwaukee’s first-inning burst gave Misiorowski enough support, and the bullpen made it stand. Tampa Bay’s late push made the finish dramatic, but Megill closed it out after the review.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Tampa Bay 6, Milwaukee 8, and its ELO system gave Milwaukee a 60.8 percent pregame probability to win. Milwaukee was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of 5 went over the over/under line of 6.5.