ARLINGTON, Texas - Carl Crawford is going through a tough stretch.
The Devil Rays leftfielder was 0-for-4 in Sunday's 6-2 loss to the Rangers. He is 0-for-9 in his past two games and was 5-for-30 with one walk, one RBI and two runs on the seven-game road trip.
That's not business as usual for the dynamic leadoff hitter, whose average dipped below .300, to .298, for only the second day since June 10.
Crawford said he was frustrated after Saturday's 0-for-5, but Sunday seemed to take it in stride.
"I knew I was going to have a time where this was going to happen," he said. "I don't expect to get a hit every game. At the rate I was going I knew at some point I was going to go through this period. I just need to shorten it as quick as possible, come back (Tuesday) and have a good game."
Crawford's 47 stolen bases still comfortably lead the league, but the 23-year-old had just one steal on the road trip.
No extra pressure, he said.
"Me personally, I forget about it. I forget about it as soon as it happens," he said. "I already forgot about it by the time it's time to get ready for the next game. That's how I get over an oh-for. Go to the cage, work on little things. It's August. It's tough days. You've got to find a way to grind it out and get it done."
ON THE OTHER HAND: Crawford's 271 chances are the most handled among major-league outfielders without an error. Crawford has made one error in his past 249 games and none in his past 126.
SOSA'S ARM: Give Rays starter Jorge Sosa credit. The mid 90s right-hander pitched 71/3 strong innings, struck out three and allowed five runs on five hits. Much better than his previous start against the Red Sox in which he gave up seven runs on seven hits in 12/3 innings after starting with a perfect four.
"When I lost the other day I wasn't hitting my spots," Sosa said. "Today I kept hitting my spots. If I didn't, I gathered myself and relaxed and started hitting them again."
Sosa gave up a second-inning, two-run home run to Laynce Nix on a high fastball. But he retired 10 of the final 12 batters he faced before being taken out trailing 4-2 with a runner on first and one out in the eighth.
"He battled," catcher Brook Fordyce said. "He pitched good enough to get the win, that's for sure."
B.J.'S BAT: B.J. Upton used the seven-game road trip to show some of the batting skills that made him the No. 2 overall pick of the 2002 draft. The 19-year-old shortstop was 9-for-19 in five games, is on a seven-game hitting streak and raised is average from .100 to .351.
And he only made one error.
But Upton shrugged when asked how much better he is feeling compared to when he came up from Triple-A Durham.
"I feel good," he said. "I'm swinging the bat. But I'll take an 0-for-4 and a win any day."
ROCCO'S THIGH: Asked how his strained right thigh felt, centerfielder Rocco Baldelli said, "As long as I'm not doing anything, I don't feel it."
Baldelli, put on the 15-day disable list Friday for an injury sustained in mid June, said he will have an MRI today.
FIVE-RUN RULE: How odd was Saturday's 6-5 loss? It was the first time since July 22 the Rays lost scoring at least five runs and only the second time since May 30. The team was 27-2 in that stretch and is 40-9 when scoring five or more runs.
ODDS AND ENDS: For the second straight game, pitcher Jeff Niemann, the team's top draft pick, sat next to general manager Chuck LaMar. ... The Rangers took the season series 7-2 and have won all seven season series against Tampa Bay. ... The Rangers are the only team against which the Rays have not had a .500-or-better season. ... Tino Martinez's home run Friday pushed him into 89th all time with 317. ... Catcher Toby Hall, who had Sunday off, has just five hits in his past 44 at-bats and has lost 25 points off his average to .268.
