• Rays should pursue some good will

  • By Rob Neyer | March 20, 2008 11:30:36 AM PDT
Over at Rays Index they've been running a Dirtbag-O-Meter that monitors the daily fluctuations in Evan Longoria's stock. Will he make the Opening Day roster? Or will they send him back to the minors for more "seasoning"? Today Longoria's stock is way down...Two opinions:1. Management wants Longoria to open the season in the minors, if only because it might save the franchise a few million bucks down the line.and2. Management really, really wishes Longoria wasn't doing quite so well this month.But of course he's doing exceptionally well, and if he's not manning third base on Opening Day a lot of people are going to wonder why. You know what else doesn't help management? It doesn't help when reputable analysts suggest the Rays will win 88 games this season. Granted, that was before Scott Kazmir went down, but still: If not for optimistic projections, nobody would care about a couple of wins over two months.Kazmir did go down, though, and the Rays remain a long, long shot to win 88 games, let alone challenge the big boys for a spot in the playoffs. If they send Longoria down, they're going to lose some good will among their players and their fans. If they don't send him down, they might lose a few million dollars when it's time to get Dirtbag's signature on a long-term contract.So what should they do? This might be a good time to go after the good will.

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