Tampa Bay continues to lack timely hits, falling 6-2 and returning home 10 games under .500.
By DAMIAN CRISTODERO
Published August 16, 2004
ARLINGTON, Texas - Why do the Devil Rays have so much trouble on the road?
The question came up again and again Sunday, though no one seemed to have an answer.
"I don't know why that is," first baseman Aubrey Huff said. "I can't put a finger on it."
And leftfielder Carl Crawford added, "I can't even answer that for you."
It truly is one of the season's great mysteries, and it deepened after a 6-2 loss to the Rangers at Ameriquest Field.
It was Tampa Bay's sixth straight road loss and finished a 1-6 trip that dropped it to under .500 for the first time since June 11. It also was the team's 15th loss in its past 16 games away from Tropicana Field. Not exactly what was expected after an 8-5 homestand.
Said manager Lou Piniella: "It wasn't very good."
More frustration. The Rays outhit Texas in the first two games of the series and tied at seven in the third. But Tampa Bay lacked timely and bunched hitting and showed a startling lack of power as the Rangers, outhit 27-21, led 11-9 in extra-base hits and 6-2 in home runs.
"We're getting hits but they're measly hits and worthless hits," Huff said. "They're two-out hits, singles, and nobody is really driving the ball. We're not hitting homers. We're not hitting doubles. Those are quick places to get big runs, and we're not getting those. We have to hit a lot of singles to score."
"You know what we need more than anything else?" Piniella said. "When we load the bases like we do, and get a runner on first and second, is a nice ringing double to right-centerfield and left-centerfield. That's what we need.
"That's what we've missed more than anything else offensively. We've missed that nice crisp double to the gap, and watch people run for a while."
The Rays got an outstanding effort from starter Jorge Sosa, who allowed five runs on five hits and struck out three. The team even took a 1-0 lead in the second when B.J. Upton's one-out triple scored Jose Cruz, who began the inning with a double.
But Upton was stranded when Jorge Cantu and Joey Gathright grounded out. Texas' Laynce Nix blasted a two-run home run in the second for a 2-1 lead.
The Rays tied it in the third when Huff extended his hitting streak to nine games with his 22nd home run off the pole in right. But Texas took advantage of three walks by Sosa, one intentional, a double and two sacrifice flies to take a 4-2 lead in the fourth.
For good measure Mark Teixeira cranked his 28th home run, a two-run blast in the eighth off Danys Baez, who was brought in to face the slugging first baseman.
Compare that to the Rays who, after Huff's homer, managed just four hits off starter Ryan Drese and relievers Ron Mahay and Carlos Almanzar.
Tampa Bay got two singles in the seventh. But after Cantu led off with a hit, catcher Brook Fordyce hit into a double play.
"It just shows you we're still a ways away from where we want to be," Crawford said. "We play teams like this, contending teams, and we see how we get beat."
And they see it so much more on the road where the Rays are 20-38 compared to 34-26 at home.
"I have no idea," Crawford said. "I don't even know."
