The last World Series in which both participants were seeking their first championship took place in 1980, when the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Kansas City Royals in six games. With the National League champions Milwaukee Brewers patiently awaiting their opponent, the Tampa Bay Rays have a chance to make the 2026 World Series the eighth such matchup in history. Make your MLB, Monday Night Football and NHL picks at BetMGM Sportsbook with promo code CBSSPORTS and get up to $1,500 in bonus bets: The Rays attempt to reach the Fall Classic for the third time in franchise history when they host the Cleveland Guardians at 8 p.m.
ET on Monday for Game 6 of the 2026 ALCS at Tropicana Field in St. Tampa Bay fell behind 2-1 in the series but followed a rainout on Friday with 7-3 and 3-1 triumphs to push Cleveland to the brink of elimination. Freddy Peralta looks to help lead the Rays to a showdown with Milwaukee in a clash between two of the five major league teams that have yet to win a World Series title when he takes the mound Monday.
The 30-year-old Dominican right-hander, who spent the first eight years of his career with the Brewers, earned the victory in Game 2 of the ALCS as he scattered four hits over six scoreless innings and also recorded the final two outs of the sixth inning in Tampa Bay's Game 4 triumph. With their backs against the wall, the Guardians likely will use an abundance of pitchers in Game 6, beginning with reliever Shawn Armstrong. The 36-year-old righty will be throwing for the third consecutive day as he opened Game 4 on Saturday with a scoreless inning and worked 1 1/3 frames out of the bullpen in Sunday's Game 5 without allowing a run.
Cleveland has not won the World Series since 1948, losing each of its last four appearances. It last reached the Fall Classic in 2016, when the Chicago Cubs won a seven-game thriller to end their 108-year championship drought. The Brewers, who swept the two-time reigning champions Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS, were beaten by the St.
Louis Cardinals in their only previous trip to the World Series in 1982 while representing the AL. Bet on Monday's MLB, NFL and NHL games with the bet365 promo code: Week 6 of the 2026 NFL season concludes when the Washington Commanders (1-3-1) visit the San Francisco 49ers (5-0) at 8:15 p.m. ET on Monday Night Football at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Cal.
The Commanders are coming off a 27-27 tie with the New York Giants in which they squandered a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter, while the 49ers are looking to remain one of the league's three undefeated teams. San Francisco, which is 3-0 at home this year, has won seven of its last nine meetings with Washington. There are four games on Monday's NHL schedule, including a matchup between the Pittsburgh Penguins (3-5-1) and Utah Mammoth (6-3-0) at 9 p.m.
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