At some point during Friday’s World Series opener, we’re sure plenty of Tampa Bay Rays fans wished they had their own version of Jacob Misiorowski. 

As it turns out, the Rays may have been among those legitimately interested in having the real thing. 

Social media is far more efficient than people give it credit for, and a July 2025 article regarding the Brewers’ ace resurfaced on Friday morning. Major League Baseball’s Adam McCalvy reported last year that the Rays, Brewers and Rockies were the only three MLB teams that attended a December 2019 bullpen session in Kansas City to see the Miz, who at that point was in his senior year of high school and far lighter than his current 6-foot-7, 201-pound frame. 

“I don’t know if I’ve ever written a report on a guy off one bullpen with that conviction,” Brewers regional scouting supervisor Drew Anderson said.

Misiorowski lost his senior season to the pandemic and enrolled at Crowder College (Mo.) after going undrafted. Milwaukee instead used a second-round pick on the future All-Star in 2022 — two spots ahead of Tampa, who took outfielder Brock Jones instead.

What would have happened had the Tampa Bay Rays drafted Jacob Misiorowski?

Whether it’s JaMarcus Russell or Greg Oden, sports fans love a good “what if?” discussion. We’re too early in Misiorowski’s career to fully evaluate and predict a world in which he landed in Tampa Bay instead of Milwaukee. 

What we found interesting is that some in the Brewers’ 2020 draft room fought for Misiorowski and suggested paying him third-round money. But because the pandemic shortened the draft to five rounds, they felt they shouldn’t take the risk — which, for the record, we agree was the right call given the context. 

But should the Rays have possibly taken the opposite approach and selected Misiorowski in 2020? Those questions are notoriously difficult in baseball; it’s easy to forget he was an 18-year-old who hadn’t pitched a meaningful game in over a year. We don’t know how he’d have fared without three years of experience — albeit temporarily halted by a freshman-year knee injury — in college and summer ball. 

Anderson referenced Pirates ace Paul Skenes, who went No. 1 in 2023, and how easy a decision that was for Pittsburgh. Milwaukee lucked out, so to speak, by having an incredible player development program that consistently churns out above-average position players and reliable pitchers. Imagine if Misiorowski landed in Colorado?

Misiorowski did his part on Friday night, limiting the Rays to one run over five innings. Assuming the Brewers hold on and win their first World Series title, we hope Anderson and area scout Riley Bandelow receive better treatment than the New York Knicks’ employees.