On June 7, Evan Longoria officially retired as a member of the Tampa Bay Rays. Longoria was selected by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the first round of the 2006 draft. He made his MLB debut in 2008 and spent 16 seasons in the majors. In his career, Longoria played 1986 games, slashing .264/.333/.471 with 342 home runs and 1159 RBI.
Well, he might not become a Hall of Famer. However, it’s worthwhile to look back at his days with the Rays. Most of the time, he played for the Rays. Longoria spent 10 seasons with the Rays. In those 10 seasons, he hit .270/.341/.483 with 261 home runs and 892 RBI in 1435 games. Looking at his numbers, he might be one of the best third basemen in the majors?
To solve my doubts, I decided to check on the Fangraphs website.
From 2008 to 2017, Longoria collected 1471 hits, which ranked 2nd among third basemen. During the same period, Adrian Beltre collected 1615 hits. Adrian Beltre played in the majors from 1998 to 2018. In those 21 seasons, he had 3166 hits. Moreover, Martin Prado played in the majors from 2006 to 2019. He had 1542 hits in his career. From 2008 to 2017, Prado collected 1409 hits.
In addition, from 2008 to 2017, Evan Longoria crushed 261 home runs, which were 3rd most among third baseman. During the same period, Edwin Encarnacion blasted 300+ home runs. Well, Encarnacion is well-known as a DH. However, he still played a significant amount of time at third base. He played in the majors from 2005 to 2020. In those 15 seasons, he smashed 424 home runs. Furthermore, Mark Reynolds had 298 home runs in his career. 264 of them were hit from 2008 to 2017. During the same period, Adrian Beltre and Ryan Zimmerman each hammered 200+ home runs as well.
Also, looking at RBI, Evan Longoria collected 892 RBI, which were most among third basemen from 2008 to 2017. Meanwhile, Edwin Encarnacion and Adrian Beltre each had 800+ RBI during the same period. Furthermore, Mark Reynolds and Ryan Zimmerman each had 700+ RBI from 2008 to 2017.
Finally, from 2008 to 2017, Longoria owned an OPS over .800. Kris Bryant made his MLB debut in 2015. From 2015 to 2017, he had an OPS over .900. Kevin Youkilis played in the majors from 2004 to 2013. From 2008 to 2013, Youkilis posted an OPS over .880. Moreover, Josh Donaldson made his MLB debut in 2010. But he didn’t play in the majors in 2011. However, he had a fantastic season in 2015 and won the AL MVP award. From 2010 to 2017, Donaldson’s OPS in the majors was over .870. And Nolan Arenado made his MLB debut in 2013. From 2013 to 2017, his OPS was over .870 as well.
Looking back at Longoria’s career, his numbers might not be good enough to be a Hall of Famer. However, he certainly played an extremely important role in the Rays franchise history. In particular, in those 10 seasons with the Rays, he was one of the best third basemen in the majors and contributed a lot to the team. Without doubt, he’s a franchise legend.
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