Here’s a heartfelt message to Major League Baseball viewers more focused on a ratings slide than a mascot sliding down a tube after home runs, and to detractors who think baseball is boring unless the New York Yankees or the Los Angeles Dodgers are involved: Some of us are still here for the love of the game.

The Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers, both hunting for their first World Series title, gave us a lot to cheer about in the first two games of this fall’s series. And their yearlong success is indicative of why baseball is bigger than its big-name franchises.

Boring? How about a pair of one-run games to start things off?

Friday night, down 3-1 in the top of the ninth, Tampa Bay loaded the bases with one out and Liam Hicks at bat. Milwaukee then comes up with the defensive gem of the night: a game-ending double play. Or did they? Replays showed that shortstop Cooper Pratt’s foot came off the bag at second, extending the game and giving the Rays new life. No matter.…