Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) -
It's what makes fantasy sports and sports in general so great - the unpredictability of it all. Just when you think the NBA finals is destined to be a matchup between Lebron James and Kobe Bryant, the Orlando Magic and Denver Nuggets get in the way. As we write this, both Cleveland and Los Angeles are struggling just to win their conference finals.
And just when you begin to believe that Evan Longoria is the best fantasy player in the major leagues, he falls into a slump worthy of Mario Mendoza.
Through the first 30 games of the 2009 season, Longoria, the second-year third baseman of the Tampa Bay Rays, was unstoppable. In 120 at-bats, Longoria had 27 runs scored, 11 home runs, a league-leading 44 runs batted in and hit .367 with a spectacular 1.181 OPS.
Something must have happen in the May 10th game against the Boston Red Sox and Josh Beckett, because since then Longoria has been in a huge batting slump.
Beginning with the May 10th game and ending with last night's contest (May 26th), Longoria's numbers look more like a backup fantasy player than your team's superstar. He's had 59 at-bats with just seven runs scored, no home runs, five RBIs, is batting .237 with an OPS of .688. The following players have an OPS in the .675 to .690 range - Mike Fontenot, Daniel Murphy and Willy Taveras.
Not exactly what you wanted out of your second-round pick (2009 Average Draft Position was 15) when you made the selection on Draft Day was it?
But fear not. May was also his worst hitting month in 2008 too. If he rebounds as he did then, you have nothing to worry about. So resist the temptation to trade the future superstar, he will get you the numbers you are looking for if only you will be patient.
Evan Longoria Career Hitting Statistics - by month
| Month |
AB |
R |
H |
HR |
RBI |
SB |
AVE |
SLG |
OPS |
| March/April |
139 |
27 |
46 |
9 |
34 |
3 |
0.331 |
0.640 |
1.048 |
| May |
202 |
29 |
52 |
9 |
43 |
2 |
0.257 |
0.465 |
0.796 |
| June |
100 |
19 |
30 |
8 |
19 |
1 |
0.300 |
0.650 |
1.024 |
| July |
90 |
10 |
27 |
4 |
16 |
2 |
0.300 |
0.522 |
0.905 |
| August |
29 |
5 |
9 |
3 |
8 |
1 |
0.310 |
0.655 |
1.010 |
| September/October |
67 |
11 |
16 |
5 |
14 |
0 |
0.239 |
0.522 |
0.810 |
|
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