RADIO
Evan Longoria 2022 Player Outlook: Veteran Remains Productive But Health A Problem
3 years agoEvan Longoria will open the season on the IL after undergoing surgery to repair a ligament in his finger and is expected to miss six weeks. That leaves a mid-May return and another season with a significant chunk of missed time. Longoria only managed 81 games last season due to shoulder and hand injuries and the player who missed just 12 games in five years between 2013 and 2017 is starting to show signs of wear and tear. When healthy, Longoria still performed well last year, with 13 homers, 46 RBI, 45 runs, one steal and a .261/.351/.482 slash line. Longoria's 23.4% K% in 2021 was the highest it's been since his debut season in 2008 but he also had a 12.0% BB% which was the second-highest he's had in any season and his best in a decade. The introduction of a universal DH should help Longoria when he returns from injury, being able to rest his 36-year-old limbs from playing third base every day. But he needs to overcome the finger injury first and they can be tricky to fully recover from. With an ADP of ~463, Longoria was only a deeper league play but could make a nice IL stash in shallower leagues too, especially with third base not being as deep as it once was.
