Rays Took Long View With Evan Longoria

BOSTON—Sometimes top draft picks and prospects don’t work out. When they do, the reward is absolutely massive.

Evan Longoria is one who has worked out, and the Rays continue to benefit 10 years after selecting him third overall in the 2006 draft out of Long Beach State.

Longoria hit the tie-breaking solo home run in the eighth inning, a titanic 434-foot shot over the Green Monster in left-center field, to lift the Rays to a 4-3 win over the Red Sox on Tuesday night. It was Longoria’s 98th career home run that either pulled the Rays into a tie or gave them a lead.

“It’s always impressive, but it is what he does, and that’s why he’s such a special player,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said. “Special players, there’s a lot of them in baseball, and you only get to that point from doing it for a long time. They’ve got their fair share of them over in (the Red Sox) dugout. We’re thankful we’ve got Longo on our side.”

The home run was Longoria’s 31st of the year, helping keep him on pace to surpass his previous career high of 33 homers set in 2009.

Whether it’s during the Rays’ peak years of contending for a World Series or their current status in last place, the homegrown third baseman just keeps helping the franchise win games.

“The numbers I wrote down before the season as goals were a little bit higher than 30 (home runs), so if I can get to that number I wrote down, it wasn’t 40, but 40 I feel like is attainable,” Longoria said. “I don’t want to put a limit on what’s possible. I want to go out and keep winning games like tonight.”

Longoria, now 30, was a later bloomer than is often remembered. He wasn’t an Area Code Games invitee or a showcase standout. In fact, he didn’t have a single scholarship offer out of high school and had to attend Rio Hondo (Calif.) JC just outside of Los Angeles before making his way to Division I ball.

It was only after he grew two inches and gained 25 pounds in junior college that he began to get noticed.

“At Rio Hondo is where I kind of became a man,” Longoria said. “I had a decent frame but grew into my body there, learned how to play the game better too and just got better. It’s a cool story to tell other kids. It’s kind of what makes baseball great. Just because you aren’t one of those big-time high school recruits doesn’t mean you can’t play. There’s always avenues to show yourself and prove yourself.”

The rest is history. Longoria got a scholarship to Long Beach State and earned Cape Cod League MVP honors in 2005. His power continued to grow as a prospect to the point he was considered an annual 30-home run threat, all while keeping his smooth swing that’s allowed him to hit .273 in his major league career.

Baseball America named Longoria the game’s No. 7 prospect after his professional debut season in 2006 and the No. 2 prospect after 2007.

Now, he is the Rays’ franchise leader in doubles, home runs, total bases, RBI and WAR, and has received American League MVP votes in five of his eight full seasons.

“It’s so much fun to watch,” Rays infielder Brad Miller said. “It’s no surprise to us. He comes to the field everyday and works his butt off and is the first one in here. I know it’s cliché, but he is. And he does it in the game. When the lights turn on he’s the real deal. He’s our leader and it’s fun to play alongside him.”

With each passing year, Longoria is the top draft pick that keeps on giving.

“I signed a long-term deal and committed myself to this organization, the organization I’ve been with from the beginning,” Longoria said. “I want to win here, I want to keep having success here. That’s the plan.”