The Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers can credit their success this season to their managers, first and foremost.
The saying, “Those who can, do; those who can’t, teach,” from George Bernard Shaw’s “Man and Superman,” applies to both managers in this season’s World Series, Tampa Bay’s Kevin Cash and Milwaukee’s Pat Murphy. Both dugout bosses had little success as players but as managers led their clubs to the best records in the American and National Leagues in 2026.
For Cash, getting a second crack at hoisting MLB’s Commissioner’s Trophy is as good as it gets. The Rays’ skipper is from Tampa, and this season was his 12th guiding the Rays. He starred in baseball at Hillsborough County’s Gaither High School, succeeded at Florida State University in Tallahassee, and even wore the Rays (then Devil Rays) uniform for 13 of the 246 MLB games he logged over an eight-year playing career.
The six clubs that Cash played for tagged him as a reserve, beginning with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2002. Never appearing in more than 61 games in any one season, Cash was learning to lead from the best vantage point in any stadium: sitting on the bench. As manager, Cash took the Rays to the World Series in 2020, but Tampa Bay came up short against the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games. Now, coming off the club’s third American League pennant in the organization’s 29th season, Cash is staring at collecting its first championship.
The Rays clinched the pennant at home Monday with a 7–3 victory over the Cleveland Guardians. When asked by ESPN what it took for his club to be the last American League team standing, Cash was pithy in his assessment.
“A lot. A lot of good players playing great baseball all season long, and especially in this month of October.”
Cash’s preparation for coaching began with his playing nearly 700 minor league games over a decade. In 2013, two years after last catching a game professionally, Cash was given his first coaching job by Cleveland Guardians (then Indians) manager Terry Francona, who needed a bullpen coach. In 2015, after just two seasons in Cleveland, Tampa Bay took a chance on the unproven hometown prodigy.
One dozen seasons later, in 2026, the Rays finished 98–64.
Unlike Cash, Brewers skipper Pat Murphy played only four minor league seasons, never progressing past the Single-A level. But he watched, listened, and learned from pro instructors, then took that knowledge to the college game. Seven seasons leading the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish baseball program, followed by 15 years as head coach of Arizona State University baseball, prepared Murphy well for the jump when MLB came calling.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy crosses the field after making a pitching change against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series at American Family Field in Milwaukee on Oct. 12, 2026. (Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
When Counsell took a five-year deal beginning in 2024 to manage the Chicago Cubs, Murphy was promoted. In his first two seasons as skipper he’s been selected National League Manager of the Year, and he has a better than even chance of winning the honor a third time in 2026: Milwaukee’s 103–59 regular season finish was MLB’s best record. The Brewers also claimed their third straight NL Central Division title under Murphy.
Speaking to reporters after the Brewers clinched the National League pennant on Thursday, Murphy expressed the importance of the Milwaukee community.
“Those fans. They wanted this. Our players sense how bad they wanted it. And that gives them the energy and motivation. It makes a difference.”
Murphy also touched on the importance of the Brewers having home field advantage in the World Series.
“We won the most games in baseball again this year. That gives us a home field advantage that does matter. Just because we came out here [Los Angeles] and won two, that speaks to our group and their resiliency. But home field does matter.”
On Friday, Cash, who also has won consecutive top manager awards (American League 2020 and 2021), will take MLB’s grandest stage representing his hometown club. For Murphy, who waited nearly one dozen years to reach baseball’s pinnacle, Game 1 in Milwaukee will be sweet. Even George Bernard Shaw might consider them among “those who can.”
