Sports · 2026-10-29

Why Jacob Misiorowski Is Trending: Game 5 Start After the Rays' 12-Inning Game 4 Walk-Off

Trend basis: CyberKendra's Google Trends United States snapshot, October 29, 2026, 09:49 KST. The listed #1 query was 'nba games today' — a generic schedule query with no news story behind it — so under the standing rule the next real topic is used: Jacob Misiorowski (20,000+ searches), Milwaukee's Game 5 starter. Facts are drawn from MLB.com and USA Today coverage of Game 4 (October 28, 2026) and Game 5 previews from Deadspin, The Rooster and FirstSportz. Game 5 began at 8:00 p.m. ET on October 28 (09:00 KST on October 29) and was under way at writing time, so no Game 5 result is stated.

The answer first:

The answer first: Jacob Misiorowski is trending because he is the pitcher Milwaukee is counting on to finish the job: he starts Game 5 of the World Series at Tampa Bay on Wednesday night, with the Brewers leading the series 3-1. One night earlier, Tampa Bay refused to be swept, beating Milwaukee 4-3 in 12 innings on a pinch-hit walk-off single by Ben Williamson. A Brewers win in Game 5 gives the franchise its first championship since it began play in 1969. A Rays win sends the series back to Milwaukee for Game 6 on Friday, October 30, and, if needed, Game 7 on Saturday, October 31.

Key points

Game 4 final: Tampa Bay 4, Milwaukee 3, in 12 innings at Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, on October 27 (US time). Milwaukee leads the series 3-1.

The winning rally: rookie Cooper Pratt's solo home run in the top of the 12th put Milwaukee ahead 3-2; in the bottom half, a Joey Ortiz throwing error put Junior Caminero aboard, and Shane Drohan allowed four consecutive singles without recording an out. Williamson's pinch-hit single won it.

Game 4 starters were Dustin May (Milwaukee, 3.0 innings, 2 runs) and Griffin Jax (Tampa Bay, 4.0 innings, 2 runs, 6 strikeouts) — the game became a bullpen duel after both left early.

Milwaukee reliever Aaron Ashby threw 2⅓ perfect innings in Game 4, extending his single-postseason scoreless relief streak to a record 18 innings, past Andrew Miller's 16 in 2016.

Misiorowski started Game 1 for Milwaukee (5 innings, 1 run) and, according to reports, threw the fastest pitch in World Series history. He sat in the bullpen through the late innings of Game 4 and never entered the game.

Game 5: Wednesday, October 28, 8:00 p.m. ET (09:00 KST, October 29) at Tropicana Field, televised on FOX in the United States. Tampa Bay's Game 5 starter had not been announced at the time of the previews.

Why it's trending

Search interest follows the decision Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy now faces, and the one he already made. In Game 4, with the Brewers three outs from a sweep, Murphy did not use Misiorowski in extra innings. Asked why, he said he did not want to burn his Game 5 starter in a one-run game on the road while leading the series 3-0 — a quote that has circulated widely since. Now the question is simpler and bigger: can the 24-year-old rookie, described in previews as the favourite for this year's National League Cy Young Award, close out the series on the road in the biggest start of his life? The fact that Misiorowski also leads the US trending list while 'j. misiorowski' and 'misiorowski' appear in Mexico's top 10 shows the same game is driving searches on both sides of the border.

Timeline

October 23, 2026 (Game 1): Milwaukee beats Tampa Bay 3-2. Misiorowski starts, gives up 1 run in 5 innings, and the Brewers' bullpen holds on.

October 25-26, 2026 (Games 2-3): Milwaukee wins two more, including a 10-1 rout in Game 3, to take a 3-0 series lead.

October 27, 2026, evening ET (Game 4): The teams are tied 2-2 after nine innings and scoreless through 11. Pratt homers in the top of the 12th for a 3-2 Milwaukee lead; Tampa Bay answers with four straight singles in the bottom half and Williamson's walk-off single for a 4-3 win.

October 28, 2026, morning ET: Murphy explains why Misiorowski stayed in the bullpen in Game 4, and previews name Misiorowski as the Game 5 starter.

October 28, 2026, 8:00 p.m. ET / October 29, 09:00 KST (Game 5): Milwaukee at Tampa Bay, Tropicana Field. Result: not yet confirmed at the time of writing.

Confirmed vs. not confirmed

Confirmed: the Game 4 final score (4-3, 12 innings) and the sequence of the winning rally; the Game 4 starters and their lines; Ashby's record scoreless relief streak; Murphy's explanation for not using Misiorowski in Game 4; the Game 5 date, venue, start time and Misiorowski as Milwaukee's starter; the conditional dates for Games 6 and 7 in Milwaukee.

Not confirmed: the Game 5 result, because the game was under way when this article was written. Tampa Bay's Game 5 starter, which had not been announced in the previews checked. Caminero's condition after he came up limping while beating out the ball to first in the 12th inning of Game 4 — worth watching, but no injury update is confirmed here.

For readers

If you need the Game 5 result, check the official MLB or Brewers box score for October 28 rather than a trending-search snippet, which captures interest, not the outcome.

Do not confuse the two Misiorowski storylines: his Game 1 start (already played, Milwaukee won) and his Game 5 start (the reason he is trending now). The Game 4 debate is about a decision that was not made — he never pitched in Game 4.

In the United States, Game 5 is on FOX and Fox Deportes. In Mexico, check your local listing before first pitch, because the Mexican broadcast carrier was not confirmed in the sources checked.

A 3-1 lead is commanding but not final: no team has lost a World Series after leading 3-0, but Tampa Bay only needs one win at home to force the series back to Milwaukee.

What to watch

The confirmed Game 5 result and Misiorowski's full line — innings, strikeouts, and whether he goes deep enough to hand a lead to the bullpen.

Whether Caminero, who limped after his 12th-inning at-bat in Game 4, is in Tampa Bay's Game 5 lineup and how he moves.

If Tampa Bay wins Game 5, the Game 6 pitching matchup in Milwaukee on October 30 — and whether Milwaukee's bullpen, taxed by a 12-inning game, recovers in time.

Whether Milwaukee celebrates its first title on the road, or whether the series returns to American Family Field for a weekend finish.