Davey Johnson Doesn't Plan On Using Evan Longoria In WBC

by Tommy Rancel on Mar 20, 2009 5:30 PM EDT

For all those expecting to see Evan Longoria trot out on the field on Sunday in his brand new red, white and blue USA uniform, you may be disappointed. In fact, if you take the words of USA Manager Davey Johnson literally, then don't expect to see Longoria on the field at all.

“I’m not expecting to use him,” Johnson said. “He’s an insurance policy. I could have used somebody that could play first base because we’ve had injuries over there [and it’s] a little more critical to the team. We’re in good shape. We’re going to be in good shape on Sunday.” --RaysReport

It seems like a waste of time to send Longoria cross country in the middle of spring training just to sit on a bench. What it truly sounds like to me, is Johnson is upset that he didn't get a player he wanted. I'm not sure who made the call on adding Longoria, but it doesn't seem to be Johnson.

If the USA makes it to the finals, they will play Monday night at 9 PM. This means Longo would've missed not only today's game, but the two games over the weekend and Monday's contest as well. The Rays have an off day Tuesday, so the earliest he would get back on the field with the team is Wednesday. That would be almost a week of not seeing live pitching. It shouldn't be that big of a deal in the grand scheme of things, but is it really necessary?

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I know they need bodies

But if they’re not going to use him, give him back to us.

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:34 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs

This

Ixnay on the bullshit man

Swav or Die.

by SRQman on Mar 20, 2009 5:36 PM EDT up reply actions

It's Davey Johnson's way of whining that Longoria is refusing to play 1B.

Vogt early, Vogt often.

by Brickhaus on Mar 20, 2009 7:58 PM EDT up reply actions

I think it's the Rays tying his hands in this situation.

As he said, he needed a 1B. Derek Lee was the only 1B on the provisional roster that could be added. If it were up to him, I’d bet he’d play Longoria over DeRosa at 1st, but the Rays said no. So he sits. However if anyone gets hurt, he’ll play.

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 5:36 PM EDT reply actions

He can't play for Wright one game?

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:39 PM EDT up reply actions

There are only 2 games left right?

Wright has been there all along. It’s not fair to him to have an injury replacement sit for him. Remember, Longoria choose to go. He was told the plan before he left I’m sure.

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 5:44 PM EDT up reply actions

Who's the DH in those games?

Either Wright or Longoria has a better bat than Jeter

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:45 PM EDT up reply actions

Yes, but DHing forces Jeter out of the field.

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:45 PM EDT up reply actions

Nooooooooo!

Swav or Die.

by SRQman on Mar 20, 2009 5:46 PM EDT up reply actions

Win/Win

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:47 PM EDT up reply actions

So does sitting on the bench

Vogt early, Vogt often.

by Brickhaus on Mar 20, 2009 7:58 PM EDT up reply actions

Yes but Jeter is the face of US baseball.

Like it or not (and I mega-loathe him) he has to play. And again, he’s been there all along.

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 5:47 PM EDT up reply actions

We need Herm Edwards to manage this team

and “play to win the game”

Swav or Die.

by SRQman on Mar 20, 2009 5:48 PM EDT up reply actions

Who cares who has been there all along?

If someone you bring in is better, they should play.

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:48 PM EDT up reply actions

It's an exhibition tournament, not a regular team. You can't alienate people. It's not that simple.

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 5:49 PM EDT up reply actions

I can, I don't care about their feelings

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:51 PM EDT up reply actions

I know you don't.

But USA Baseball does.

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 5:51 PM EDT up reply actions

And this is why we'll probably lose to a team that only cares about winning.

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:52 PM EDT up reply actions

Agreed

I wanted to bring this up in the other post, but I think teams like the Netherlands and Cuba may enjoy somewhat of a tactical advantage in this regard.

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 5:53 PM EDT up reply actions

Cuba doesn't care about anything but winning.

They have the treat of their lives.

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 5:55 PM EDT up reply actions

You misspelled "fear".

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:56 PM EDT up reply actions

I think he might have been going for 'threat'

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 5:56 PM EDT up reply actions

It appears I was.

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 5:57 PM EDT up reply actions

It's really, really hard to have it both ways.

Look at the DR, they wouldn’t play Hanley and Reyes at the same time, instead going for Cano and Aybar/Tatis. Unless the teams said no, why didn’t one of them play second, or first?

I wouldn’t want Evan doing it, but those guys aren’t on my team so I really couldn’t careless.

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:55 PM EDT up reply actions

This always works out for the best. See: WBC 2006.

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:49 PM EDT up reply actions

Longoria also said he wasn't up for playing 1B.

by Tommy Rancel on Mar 20, 2009 5:40 PM EDT up reply actions

I know he said it, but I'm still pretty sure that's just him taking the company line.

1B is really easy for someone who plays a plus 3B. And what 2nd year player would, on his own say no to playing if all they have to do is move across the IF?

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 5:51 PM EDT up reply actions

One who is smart enough not to piss off the man who's paying him millions.

No doubt he could do it, but he should do whatever the Rays tell him to do.

by Tommy Rancel on Mar 20, 2009 5:52 PM EDT up reply actions

Oh absolutely.

I wasn’t arguing that. I was just saying that even though he said he didn’t want to play 1st, it wasn’t his decision.

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 5:57 PM EDT up reply actions

I'm pretty sure the Nats and Indians don't want Dunn and DeRosa playing 1B either

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:58 PM EDT up reply actions

Didn't DeRosa play some first base for the Cubs?

And I know Dunn has.

First is an unnatural position for Evan.

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 6:00 PM EDT up reply actions

I know they both can play there but their teams really don't want them to.

Though Dunn should with the Nats outfield situation

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 6:03 PM EDT up reply actions

Well, Johnson's hand was forced

If the choice is put Dunn in or take your team off the field, I can understand not consulting with the Nationals. However, that choice wouldn’t have to be made under normal circumstances

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 6:05 PM EDT up reply actions

Yeah, but

1. DeRosa has played there before
2. Dunn will wind up there if he’s even remotely passable

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 6:01 PM EDT up reply actions

They don't, but they were already on the team.

USA Baseball works with the teams very closely though. The Rays probably wouldn’t have sent Evan without assurance that he wouldn’t be played at 1st.

Tools Whore

by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 6:01 PM EDT up reply actions

Or Longoria's Choice

Either way, it’s two games we are talking about here. So it’s not like he even has time to rot on the bench.

The thing about it that bothers me isn’t the time he’d miss but the message it sends to potential players in the future. There is a good argument to be made that Jeter should be played at SS because he has been so willing to play in the past, and players willing to make the sacrifice shouldn’t have their offers thrown back in their faces. This just isn’t the way Johnson should be treating someone who is going to work for free.

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 5:40 PM EDT up reply actions

by 'played' at SS of course I mean 'evenly platooned'

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 5:43 PM EDT up reply actions

He's actually missing 4 games, but I'm not really concerned about that.

Like you said it’s about the treatment of the player. Every quote from Longoria was about how excited he was to play for Team USA. Now he gets to be a cheerleader unless someone gets hurt, which you don’t want to see.

It seems like a big waste of time for him now.

by Tommy Rancel on Mar 20, 2009 5:43 PM EDT up reply actions

So you're saying he's basically Jonny Gomes of 2008

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:44 PM EDT up reply actions

that's exactly what I was thinking

only Longo is too pretty to get into a fight

by plasticman on Mar 20, 2009 5:44 PM EDT up reply actions

Well...

It seems like a big waste of time for him now.

Can’t we say that about the entire WBC?

Swav or Die.

by SRQman on Mar 20, 2009 5:44 PM EDT up reply actions

no

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:45 PM EDT up reply actions

I don't know, the non-US teams are actually worth watching.

Seeing Ryu/Darvish/Iwakuma from my own living room was great.

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:45 PM EDT up reply actions

Well for the U.S.

I like watching Japan/Korea/Netherlands/Cuba but don’t really care about the U.S. because it’s not the best we could put out there.

Swav or Die.

by SRQman on Mar 20, 2009 5:46 PM EDT up reply actions

The U.S. team is just boring. I'd rather them field college/minor leaguers.

Unfortunately it’s during the college season.

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:48 PM EDT up reply actions

Also watching the good Cuban players we'll never get to see again is nice

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:46 PM EDT up reply actions

Unless they sneak away

by Tommy Rancel on Mar 20, 2009 5:49 PM EDT up reply actions

I would smuggle Iwakuma and Darvish here in my pants.

(I know they aren’t Cuban)

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:49 PM EDT up reply actions

Plus it acted (at least somewhat) at the platform tht brought Aki and Dice-K to the US

A trend I expect to continue for other countries in the future

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 5:46 PM EDT up reply actions

*as

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 5:47 PM EDT up reply actions

When you posting links about your findings of the old Rays hat in the 59/50 style.....

I haz money now and kinda want the old school one.

Swav or Die.

by SRQman on Mar 20, 2009 6:07 PM EDT up reply actions

This is where I got my 1998 hat. Arrived in like 2 days. IIRC it shipped from Winter Haven

http://cgi.ebay.com/INAUG-SEASON-TAMPA-BAY-DEVIL-RAYS-FITTED-HAT-NEW-ERA_W0QQitemZ120311993621QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_SM_Fan_Shop?_trksid=p3286.m20.l1116

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 6:10 PM EDT up reply actions

Save some of that dough for when Cuse puts their boot in the ass of the south division

Do what you love to do and give it your very best. Whether it's business or baseball, or the theater, or any field. If you don't love what you're doing and you can't give it your best, get out of it. Life is too short. You'll be an old man before you know it.

-Al Lopez

by Sandy Kazmir on Mar 20, 2009 6:14 PM EDT up reply actions

Yo homie chill out.

We will see _

Swav or Die.

by SRQman on Mar 20, 2009 6:15 PM EDT up reply actions

Good for Friedman.

Why wouldn’t they just take Lee if they only want a first baseman? If the Cubs said no, tough, that’s not the Rays issue.

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:53 PM EDT up reply actions

Didn't Lee get pulled from a game yesterday or the day before?

by Erik Hahmann on Mar 20, 2009 5:55 PM EDT up reply actions

No idea.

by R.J. Anderson on Mar 20, 2009 5:56 PM EDT up reply actions

I agree that 1B isnt natural for Longoria

Playing 3B isnt the same as 1B. The footwork is a lot different. Im sure he could learn the position with his skillset, but not in 1 or 2 days. He would probably be very uncomfortable

by Rays4242 on Mar 20, 2009 6:32 PM EDT up reply actions

The footwork is not that much different. He could easily be their best option there with one day of practice.

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by Tyler on Mar 20, 2009 10:07 PM EDT up reply actions

Well, I've played both

And think the footwork at 1b is more difficult (though neither is rocket science). The only thing that takes much time to learn is holding runners on, and still get yourself into fielding position. The rest is instincts and positioning, and on those items I trust his ability.

But I’d rather DeRosa play the position.

by GomesSweetGomes on Mar 20, 2009 11:15 PM EDT up reply actions