MLB WORLD SERIES: RAYS VS BREWERS

October 23, 2026

Jonathan Aranda

American Family Field

Tampa Bay Rays

Pregame 1 Press Conference

Q. Benjamin Gil, WBC manager from Mexico, was here. Did you get any suggestions or advice from him ahead of the World Series?

JONATHAN ARANDA: He was a great player and great manager, and he still is. He's someone that is just kind of a go-getter and does whatever he can to represent his country and his players. He's just a heck of a person here in the baseball sphere.

Q. In the same way, having Alejandro Kirk at Game 6, what does that mean to you, and is he here tonight for Game 1?

JONATHAN ARANDA: Unfortunately, he's not going to be here for the first two games against the Brewers. Hopefully we'll send him over to visit us in Tampa Bay. He's someone who just supports me a lot. Looking forward to getting here eventually.

Q. Regarding your relationship to Alejandro Kirk, what can you take away from what you saw from Kirk last year in the World Series against the Dodgers?

JONATHAN ARANDA: Alejandro was just being himself the entire time. He was just being himself. He was having fun at the end of the day. Obviously the stakes are high. We know that we're playing in the World Series, but Alejandro just recommended for me to just be myself, enjoy the game, be in the moment because, at the end of the day, we're still playing a game of baseball.

Q. You've been in the organization longer than any other player. You've certainly overcome a lot of things you've had to in your career. Can you just put into words personally how much this means for you to be able to play in the World Series?

JONATHAN ARANDA: I feel really happy, really proud to be here and representing Tampa Bay this year and especially for the last 11 years. The organization has been a group that has really formed me as a person and as a player.

I've had a lot of highs and lows just naturally as a baseball player, but they've supported me the entire way through. To be here is just another proud moment that I can add to the accomplishment list, again, representing the organization in a World Series.

Q. Obviously you faced a lot of pitchers who throw hard. What are the particular challenges of facing Misiorowski, who throws harder than pretty much everybody?

JONATHAN ARANDA: You know, there's not much to say. You guys know what he's like. I think we just have to play our style of game, stick sure to our plan, and try to do our best to go up against 103 miles an hour.

Q. What similarities are there between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Milwaukee Brewers, two teams that have played similar styles all year, and what challenges do you think the Brewers kind of present themselves against your team?

JONATHAN ARANDA: This team was the best team in the National League, best team in baseball for a reason. There are some similarities to this group.

Yeah, it's just a matter of playing our style of baseball but also recognizing that they're a really good team, they're competitive. They do almost everything well, and they play similar to us, and do that in a really good manner. It's just a matter of getting the better hand when we can capitalize on those moments.

Q. Could you evaluate your season, looking back to your 2025 year, how did you improve, or how do you look at this 2026 season you just had?

JONATHAN ARANDA: It was a positive year. It was a really good year in a lot of aspects. Obviously staying healthy on the field after last season was the biggest key and the biggest success.

Yeah, there's a lot of positives to take away from this year. I obviously wanted to do a little bit more as a baseball player, but overall this year was really, really good. Now we're seeing the results that I've gotten to hopefully help this team and produce in the World Series like I've produced throughout the regular season.

Q. How has the game grown in the country of Mexico? Historically, Mexico is a country that has a lot of talent from Sinaloa and Sonora, but you're from Tijuana, Baja California. What can you thank from the academy you were there with at the time?

JONATHAN ARANDA: I recognize that in the moment growing up with the game, I was with the Toros, and they showed me a lot of who I am as a baseball player and they helped me eventually get here with the Rays. You always have to pay homage to where you come from and pay respects to your native land.

I'm really proud of the time spent with the academy, and that led me to where I am now with the Rays and in the World Series.

Q. Obviously family is a very important to you in your life. How many family members do you have here visiting you?

JONATHAN ARANDA: My wife, my daughter, my dad are here in Milwaukee, and my mom will eventually join us out in Tampa Bay. Everybody will go to Tampa, and hopefully some cousins will also visit me in Tampa as well.