Ray Day! Ray Day! There's Trouble in St. Petersburg

Rayday! Rayday! There’s trouble in St. Petersburg
One week ago, everything was perfect in St. Petersburg. The Rays were sole owners of the 2nd best record in baseball and the division race was in their control.
What a difference a week can make. The Rays now face some serious adversity during the last 6 weeks of the season.
Here are three major reasons to worry if you’re a Tampa Bay Rays fan.
1. Carl Crawford
Crawford will miss 6-to-8 weeks with a torn tendon band in his right middle finger. That means he’ll miss the rest of the regular season and, if he opts for surgery, the postseason as well. That is, of course, if the Rays make the postseason.
Crawford provided a lot of leadership to a very young baseball team. He was there when Tampa Bay was terrible. Oh wait, most of these guys were around last year. Well, Crawford was around when there were no signs of hope and his veteran presence will be greatly missed.
2. Evan Longoria
Longoria has provided Tampa Bay with exactly the spark plug that they needed when he was called up one month into the season. Longoria took a J.J. Putz offering on the wrist and the result is a fractured wrist. The Rays will not only miss an irreplaceable stick at the plate, but also a very solid defender at the hot corner. Crawford and Longoria have combined for 39 Doubles, 12 Triples, 30 HR, 125 Runs, 128 RBI and 32 SB. Those numbers aren’t easily replaced.
3. Their Schedule
Tampa Bay has 24 of their remaining 43 games on the road. They have 3 games at Texas, 3 at Chicago, 3 at New York and 3 at Boston. The home games aren’t going to be easy either. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim pay a visit to Florida next week, followed by the Yankees, Red Sox and Twins next month. With only 10 games remaining against teams below .500, the Rays better make every win count.