Aaron Judge's slump is emblematic of the Yankees' struggles in the World Series

The New York Yankees have drawn all the lines appropriate to their situation. In a quiet clubhouse, suddenly losing 3-0 to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, they said they just had to focus on tomorrow. You have to play one game at a time, block out any outside noise and take care of business. They need to get back to playing their brand of baseball. And there was something else they didn't say much about, probably because it was so painfully obvious to everyone in the room after their performance in Game 3.

You have to strike.

The final score on Monday was 4 Dodgers, 2 Yankees, but that painted a falsely flattering picture of their play. They were in danger of remaining scoreless until their very last out: a two-run home run by left fielder Alex Verdugo with two outs and two strikes in the bottom of the ninth was the Yankees' only significant offense all night. His shot to right field saved them from an embarrassing shutout. But there was still plenty of awkwardness. This is one of the best lineups in baseball. His strength has all but disappeared in the last few days.

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“We have to find a way to get one,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “We have to find a way to hopefully get a head start.”

If finding a way to hopefully take the lead sounds like a ridiculously modest, far too unreserved goal for a team playing in the World Series, in this case it's appropriate. New York did not hold the lead in either Game 2 or Game 3. These deficits weren't particularly large: the Dodgers were never ahead by more than four runs in this series. They took the lead early and did just enough to win, but they weren't exceptionally dominant. But the Yankees' hitters looked so inept that even a two- or three-run lead may be impossible to overcome.

The problems were clearly visible throughout the team lineup. New York has a collective batting average of .186 in this World Series. A group that was known in the regular season for exceptional plate discipline and its ability to control the strike zone is now chasing all kinds of pitches it shouldn't: The Yankees have recorded 31 strikeouts. (The Dodgers have 17.) That's partly a product of LA's pitching: Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Walker Buehler, in particular, delivered their best performances of the year when they were needed most. “They’ve got some good pitchers over there,” Yankees catcher Jose Trevino said. “You have to give them some credit.” But this cast should be able to hold their own even against the best competition. That's exactly what it was built for. Instead, it withered.

While there's always blame to go around – lots of mistakes and missed opportunities – no one is able to absorb as much of it as Aaron Judge. The superstar slugger has struggled in the postseason in recent years. But he never looked so lost, under such bright lights, as he did this October. For the first game of the series in New York, fans tried a gentle, motivational approach with him: They greeted Judge at his first plate appearance with a rousing ovation and MVP chants. But at the end of the night he heard boos.

The judge ended the game 0:3. There were bright spots for those who looked for them: He struck out just once, compared to three times in Game 2, he drew his first walk of the series, and he made solid contact on a flyout to left field that made the had the potential to be a hit. But this kind of exercise is ridiculous at first glance. By the time a team finds itself looking for bright spots in an 0-for-3 performance from its MVP, its hopes are already far, far away.

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For his part, Judge refused to consider any bright spots in his performance. “I didn’t get hit and I didn’t hit anyone,” he said flatly when asked to rate his night. “I've got something to do up there.” He's now 1 of 12 in this World Series. The man who posted the highest walk percentage in baseball during the regular season (18.9%) managed to walk just once in three games.

The judge spoke to the media until half an hour after midnight. “We all know what’s at stake,” he said. “We all know that our backs are against the wall. We have to get going.” He talked about how well this group knows that it can be, that they are just focused on winning the next game and how they understand that they have a job to do. But it was all a way of talking about just one question that actually had only one answer.

You have to strike.