The Heart Of Rays' Order In Disarray

A lot of things have gone wrong for the Rays in the World Series and not all of it is their fault. But if they lose this tournament to Philadelphia - which looks increasingly likely after Sunday's 10-2 splat that put the Phillies one win from spraying bubbly - it won't take investigators long to explain what really happened.

Just look for the chalk outlines around the bodies of Carlos Pena and Evan Longoria.

As good as both were during the regular season and at times during the playoffs, they have been stifled now that it matters most. They are a combined 0-for-29 in the Series. Longoria has struck out nine of his 16 at-bats, including three Sunday. He looks lost. Pena looks beaten.

The score in this game makes it seem like the Rays would have lost no matter what they did, but that's a tad deceiving. The Rays were still sort of in it until Philly blew it open in the eighth. And there still is the matter of at least one more game to play.

It's really bad. They have fewer hits between them than Andy Sonnanstine, who singled in this game. Phillies pitcher Joe Blanton homered.

Then you see that Pena hasn't had a hit since a single in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series; that was 21 at-bats ago. He and Longoria are a combined 1 for their past 45. That's an .022 batting average from two men who combined for 58 home runs this season.

"It is what it is," a somber Longoria said in the quiet Rays clubhouse. "We've had our struggles in this Series. Fortunately for us we have one more game to try to break out of it. Tomorrow we'll try to do something different, obviously. This is win or go home so we have to change something."

The Phillies apparently have Pena and Longoria scouted really well and neither has been able to adjust. Longoria has never gotten comfortable the entire Series. If he's not out on his front foot because he was fooled by a change-up, he's futilely trying to check his swing against a breaking pitch.

"I'll say this," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "Our scouting reports have been very accurate, they've been very good, and I don't even want to talk about those guys making outs."

Chuck LaMar, the Rays former general manager and now scouting director with the Phillies, is one of those who has been charting Pena and Longoria in recent weeks. And, as Rays manager Joe Maddon noted, Longoria has been helping the Phillies by swinging at pitches outside the strike zone.

"You have to give credit to their guys. We really haven't had too many pitches over the middle of the plate to hit," Longoria said. "I guess if you swing at the bad ones and strike out, you really can't complain."

But you can get in a hole and it looks awfully deep right now.