Once the New York Mets traded Freddy Peralta to the Tampa Bay Rays this past summer, the Milwaukee Brewers likely figured they’d escape facing their former All-Star pitcher in the playoffs.

No such luck, not with the two No. 1 seeds set to face off in the World Series. As of publication, Rays manager Kevin Cash hadn’t announced whether Peralta — who earned ALCS MVP after limiting the Guardians to one run over 12 innings — will pitch in Saturday’s Game 2 or take the mound next Monday night in Tampa Bay. 

Milwaukee nonetheless gets its old friend at the worst time, because the 30-year-old Peralta has caught fire ahead of free agency. The Rays acquired him as a struggling rental, and he’s done far more than simply rewarding their faith.

How the Rays helped Freddy Peralta rediscover his best stuff

Peralta’s Rays debut began inauspiciously, with him allowing seven earned runs over 3.2 innings in an Aug. 4 victory over the Rockies. The poor outing was nothing new, seeing as opponents scored at least five runs in four of his final nine starts with the Mets.

Almost everyone outside the Rays’ building was shocked when Peralta was near-perfect during the season’s closing weeks. He allowed only three runs in 34 innings and proved instrumental in the Rays clinching the AL East; the Rays won all of his last six starts, and he earned five wins over that span. 

So what changed? Peralta met with Rays coaches, who let him forgo his extended windup and pitch from the stretch. He also experimented with a wider stance and a higher arm angle, among other changes.

“There’s some minor adjustments here and there,” Rays pitching coach Kyle Snyder told ESPN. “But I think more than anything else, it was just getting him back to feeling like himself. I think if you get the environment right, a lot of other things can snowball in the right direction for you.”

Brewers’ patience could test Peralta’s biggest weakness

The one knock against Peralta, though, is his diminished control. He’s allowed seven walks in 16.2 playoff innings, and he hasn’t pitched into the seventh inning since Aug. 21. We’re old-school about wanting our starters to work deep into games, and the Rays have absolutely zero margin for error left. By the way: The Brewers’ 668 walks ranked second league wide, trailing only the NL Central rival Cubs’ 674.

For their sake, the Brewers might want to face Peralta in Game 2; he gave up at least three runs in three of his final four playoff starts at American Family Field. So if he couldn’t handle the heat at home in the playoffs, what hope does he have of doing so in the World Series?