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Legendary Moments For Longoria

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By MARTIN FENNELLY | The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 23, 2008

ST. PETERSBURG - A few weeks ago, Hall of Famer Frank Robinson, one of the greats, stopped by Tropicana Field.

Robinson asked to speak with Rays center fielder B.J. Upton.

"Mr. Robinson, can I hit first?" Upton asked.

You know, 586 homers go a long way.

Robinson sensed someone else behind him. It was a fan in a Rays cap.

"Excuse me, Mr. Robinson. I'm Evan Longoria."

They shook hands.

Longoria asked Robinson if he could sign a ball.

Later, Robinson listened to a reporter.

"You say he can play?" Robinson said.

He can play.

Calm And Cool Game

The 22-year-old Rays rookie third baseman has been in the major leagues for just over two months. His education and adjustments are ongoing, as evidenced by his .249 average, but he leads American League rookies with 12 homers and is second with 37 RBIs. More to the point, it's amazing just how many moments Longoria has wedged into a thimble's full of games.

If he wasn't hitting his first big-league homer, he was hitting his first walk-off homer, or throwing someone out from his knees, or hitting two homers in his first game back home in California, with family and friends stomping and cheering. Or he was diving to make a stop, or smashing that 442-foot homer he hit in Texas, or that monster beyond the bullpens in Anaheim, estimated at more than 450 feet.

Or he was knocking one off the rays tank against the Cubs last Tuesday night ("That was a bomb," Longoria admitted) or ending the same game with a bare-handed grab and throw on a bunt. Or he was playing shortstop for the injured Jason Bartlett.

Oh, and the team he joined is winning, really winning, for the first time in its history, despite dropping two of three to the Astros. Longoria's two-run homer wasn't enough in Sunday's 3-2 loss. Still ...

"It's right where I wanted to be, and right where this team needs to be, in the mix," Longoria said last week.

That isn't even the half of it.

The other half of it is, well, It.

Call it presence, or a sense of who he is, or quiet confidence, but it adds up to the It factor. This kid has It. And It will get better.

"Fasten your seat belt," Rays manager Joe Maddon said.

Longoria has had his share of slumps at the plate, but it has never crept into his defense. His play at third has often been spectacular. He leads all AL third basemen in fielding percentage. What really grabs you is the calm and cool that surrounds Longoria's overall game.

Rays outfielder Eric Hinske was AL Rookie of the Year in 2002. He says he has never seen a rookie as mentally ready as Longoria.

"The guy never gets rattled," Hinske said. "I've never seen a young guy come in and do things the way he does them. He's like a 10-year veteran out there. It's crazy."

"We had pretty high expectations for Evan coming in, and to date he's exceeded them," Rays executive vice president Andrew Friedman said. "And it's not necessarily in the traditional stats line - it's what he brings to the all-around game. It's the way he can slow a game down in the most intensive situations, that he's able to separate his offense from his defense, so when he is scuffling at the plate a little bit, he still helps us win games. It's all very advanced for a player of his experience level."

And there's this ...

"I never saw a homer like that in Texas," Hinske said of Longoria's drive. "I never saw a ball clear both bullpens in Anaheim. He's a freak, man."

And he loves the moments that games turn on.

"I've always said that the pressure in game situations like that ... gives me a heightened sense of awareness, kind of gets me more in the moment," Longoria said.

"You don't really hear the fans. You don't really hear cheers or anything when the play is happening. It goes silent for me. It's weird ... If someone was yelling in my ear, I probably wouldn't hear it."

Team Kind Of Player

He listens to Hinske and other veterans and picks their brains. He asks Rays adviser Don Zimmer for stories. And the rookie is drawn to men like Frank Robinson.

"He's a legend," Longoria said. "Those are the guys who laid the groundwork for the game we play."

Legends aren't made in two months.

But moments do happen.

Longoria refuses to dwell on them, preferring the bigger picture, you know, the team, and being in the mix.

But when prodded, he smiled ...

"My first home run will always be my favorite. Then I'd say the walk-off homer, then the one I hit in Anaheim. The ball I hit in Texas was the farthest, I think."

Defensively?

"The one I threw off my knees the other night was my favorite play."

It's goes by so fast at times ...

"It's tough. We've been winning here. You try to take it day by day, but it speeds up on you."

Somehow, this kid slows it down.

Fasten your seat belt.

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