With the 2026 World Series matchup set between the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers, there’s been debate circulating about the lessons to be learned from those two organizations’ success this season.
After years of wailing and gnashing of teeth over salary caps and payrolls and free agency, Tampa and Milwaukee demonstrate that most of those concerns are overblown. While many have made the claim that those two organizations are “outliers,” that they’re the exception to the big market, high-payroll rule, a quick glance at recent history shows that’s not necessarily the case.
Since 2017, the last 10 years, here’s how many World Series appearances Tampa has made relative to some other big market or high-payroll teams:
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Milwaukee reaching the World Series means that 19 out of 30 MLB teams have reached the championship round since 2010. Meanwhile, 18 out of 32 NFL teams have reached the Super Bowl over that same time frame. 63% of MLB has reached the World Series, while just 56% of the NFL has gotten to the Super Bowl, despite the salary cap.
Which raises the question, how are these teams so consistently good, despite their limited player budget? Well, there’s an obvious answer that takes a little digging to find out: they spend money on other, important areas or team and roster building that many others forego.
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Several baseball fans on X have noted that the Brewers, Rays, and Dodgers are among the teams with the largest analytics departments in the league. One even found that there’s a not-insignificant relationship between having a larger analytics staff and winning more games.
It’s interesting, because much of the discourse on televised baseball is that analytics are “ruining” the sport. Yet the larger these departments are, the better their teams perform. Why would that be?
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“Analytics” is an overly broad term that doesn’t fully cover what these departments do, or what they’re researching. It’s not just, “hey this stat looks good,” it’s combining details like bat path, angles of attack, pitch shape and pitch design, exit velocities, barrel rate, performance against different pitch types, do hitters struggle against certain reliever arm slots, what’s the best combination of pitch sequencing to attack an opposing lineup…all of it is part of an analytics team. And it matters. A lot.
Those small, seemingly marginal behind-the-scenes advantages can add up over time. Better game planning, better information filtering down to coaches and eventually players, and better scouting for trades and free agency. It’s not just, “does this player have good stats,” it’s, “does this player fit a specific need on our roster?”
It can also help with amateur scouting, where the Dodgers, Rays, and Brewers also excel. Those three organizations frequently dominate the international market, which is paying tremendous dividends on their current and future rosters. Junior Caminero has become a superstar for Tampa at just 22-23 years old. Jackson Chourio for Milwaukee has the most postseason home runs by a player in MLB history before turning 23. Andy Pages was the most valuable offensive player on the Dodgers this season, by Fangraphs wins above replacement. As just a few examples.
That’s an area where many teams skimp out, when spending just a bit more money could dramatically increase their scouting prowess in international markets. And obviously, given the Brewers and Rays’ dominance in this area, it’s not impossible for smaller organizations to invest in.
A quick look at the three teams with the smallest analytics departments turns up the…Colorado Rockies, Los Angeles Angels, and Athletics. How have those organizations done in recent years?
This isn’t to say that there’s a perfect relationship between more staff and more wins, but it’s hard to argue with the success these teams have demonstrated. Particularly with Milwaukee and Tampa, as the Dodgers obviously are able to supplant their analytics group with big spending on free agents.
But if your team has fallen behind the curve in this area, it’s a lot harder to win than it needs to be. And that’s on ownership, not market size.