PHILADELPHIA — He might never pass this way again. This might be his one shining moment, without the shining part.
Maybe the Tampa Bay Rays are a budding dynasty, and they'll be back in the World Series. But maybe not, and that could leave a cruel asterisk on what should be the brilliant career of Evan Longoria.
This is a horribly awkward time for adversity to introduce itself to Longoria, but this is indeed that time. This is the first real slump of his major league career, with all of America as witnesses.
Four games into the World Series, Longoria has no hits. He has struck out more often than not -- nine strikeouts in 16 at-bats. He has hit one ball out of the infield.
If the Rays lose again tonight, the winter will be a long and cruel one for Longoria. The Philadelphia Phillies routed the Rays, 10-2, Sunday night to close to within one victory of the World Series championship. Cole Hamels, the Phillies' ace, starts tonight.
Ryan Howard, the Phillies' cleanup batter who'd been struggling at the plate for most of the postseason, hit two home runs and drove in five runs. It was almost as if Longoria, the Rays' cleanup batter, was mocked by both starting pitchers.
The Phillies' Joe Blanton hit a home run, his first since high school. The Rays' Andy Sonnanstine singled, in his first at-bat since June.
Longoria vowed to go down swinging. He has not walked in this series, but he has swung and missed at bad pitch after bad pitch.
"Hopefully, I can come out of this thing," he said. "You can't go out there with your bat on your shoulder, just hoping you're going to come out of a slump."
In his major league career, which dates all the way back to April 12, 2008, he never had gone hitless in four consecutive games, or struck out nine times in four consecutive games.
Until now.
"It's just one of those stages where I'm not locked in," he said. "I'm getting one, maybe two pitches per at-bat to hit. When you're locked in, you hit those pitches."
We've never seen him in one of those stages. The Rays gave him $3 million to sign with them out of Long Beach State two years ago, and another $17.5 million in April, signing him to a six-year contract six days into his major league career.
In July, he played in the All-Star Game. In November, he'll almost certainly win the American League rookie-of-the-year award.
"Very shortly," teammate David Price said before Game 1, "he will be the best player in baseball."
