There have been MLB trade rumors for some time involving the Tampa Bay Rays’ Evan Longoria, and the latest speculation is that the San Francisco Giants have interest. They are just one of several teams who could be presenting offers to Tampa Bay, though. In order for San Francisco to acquire him, they may have to hope for the Rays to take on the contract of a high-priced player. Here’s the latest on a possible Evan Longoria trade to San Francisco and what it would take to make it happen.
On Saturday, the Tampa Bay Times ‘ Marc Topkin reported that Evan Longoria will likely be traded ahead of April 2018, when he’d gain a “no-trade status” with his team. Topkin goes on to say that there are four teams with some interest in making a deal for Longoria and they are the St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants, New York Mets, and New York Yankees. With Longoria currently playing for an American League team, the Rays General Manager Erik Neander doesn’t seem to have any issue with regards to dealing the third baseman to a fellow AL team. The Yankees are within the same division and have already made a big move in adding Miami Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton to their lineup.
For the 2017 MLB season, Evan Longoria hit.261 with 20 home runs and 86 RBIs. For his career, he’s cranked out a total of 261 home runs and 892 RBIs with a.270 average. Longoria is now in his ninth season in the league and has spent all of those with his current team. However, in order for San Francisco to acquire Longoria, they’d likely need to send over a high-cost player such as Hunter Pence or Denard Span, per a tweet from USA Today ‘s Bob Nightengale . Pence is on a $90 million contract over five years and will be entering the final season of it, while Span has $9 million owed on his contract and an additional f$4 million buyout coming up.
It’s speculated by the MLB Trade Rumors website that the Tampa Bay Rays could use this situation to their advantage, though. Since they would have to take on the short-term implications of a high-salaried player, they could also request a bit more in the trade. That could include some sort of prospects as the Giants may have some readily available for a deal.
While Longoria had lower offensive numbers this past season, he still offers a good value to teams that want to take on his $86 million owed over the next five years. Longoria has appeared in all but 12 games since the 2013 season and has shown defensive prowess at his position that could make him quite the addition to a roster looking to improve their infield.
