San Francisco Giants decline Evan Longoria’s option for 2023 season
Nov 10, 2022, 12:33 PM | Updated: 12:35 pm
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
(Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
According to Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle, the San Francisco Giants have declined the 2023 option on third baseman Evan Longoria.
Longoria, 37, had a $13 million team option for 2023, but the Giants will instead pay the three-time All-Star in the form of a $5 million buyout. The veteran infielder remains interested in a return to Oracle Park, but seeing that this could be Longoria’s last go-around in free agency, it’s expected that he will test the market before deciding on his next stop.
Evan Longoria tells me that, as expected, the Giants have not picked up his option. A dialogue remains open with the team, though. Longoria is interested in seeing what free agency has to offer.
— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) November 10, 2022
Longoria was acquired by the Giants back in December of 2017 when they shipped Denard Span, Christian Arroyo, and others to the Tampa Bay Rays in return for the three-time Gold Glove Award winner.
Over five seasons in the orange and black (2018-22), Longoria hit .250 with a .312 on-base percentage while mashing 70 home runs and driving in 239 runs over 477 games.
Although Longoria had a track record of being healthy during his time with the Rays, that was not the case in San Francisco as he would struggle with injuries during the duration of his Giants tenure. Longoria never played in over 129 games during a single season during his time in the Bay and has only suited up for 223 games over the past three seasons (out of a possible 384 games).
The Giants will be big spenders during the coming days and weeks as free agency is set to begin at 1:00 PM PST on Thursday, as they will hope to bring a big name like Aaron Judge into the fold for next season and well beyond.
Any resolution on Longoria’s free agent status likely will not come until after Judge has made his decision, as league executives expect the free agent market to thaw slowly until the Linden native selects his team.
