ST. PETERSBURG — Memo to American League pitchers: Evan Longoria says he needs another 10 at-bats before he's really back to his preinjury form. That's a scary notion considering that Thursday night he became just the second Ray to hit three home runs in a game.
Longoria, who leads all rookies with 25 homers, hadn't hit one since Aug. 5 at Cleveland. Two days later, a ninth-inning pitch from Seattle's J.J. Putz put him on the disabled list for 30 games. Longoria led the Rays with 22 homers and 71 RBIs before the injury. Reinstated Sept. 6, he went 3-for-6 with three RBIs in a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium on Saturday.
Consider: Longoria hit three homers in April and four in May and July. His other multihomer games this year were against the Orioles on May 24 and the Angels on June 9, in which he had two each.
The power surge comes at a crucial juncture as the Rays attempt to lock down the American League East, but Longoria said he is more concerned about coming back from his injury. "I'm just more concerned about feeling comfortable in the box," he said. "I knew it was going to take a few at-bats, and I would have never expected this to happen. It's just all about getting those at-bats in. They're really starting to count now, so I want to be as comfortable as I can when the pressure is on."
Longoria went 1-for-9 in a three-game series against Boston this week. Thursday, he cut the Twins' lead to 3-2 with a booming two-run shot down the leftfield line in the first. Then he lined a two-out shot to the same area in the fourth for a 7-4 Rays lead.
Longoria led off the seventh with a shot just inside the leftfield line that cleared the half-wall out of Delmon Young's reach. Longoria joined Jonny Gomes (July 30, 2005) as the only Rays to hit three homers in a game.
All three of Longoria's homers came on inside pitches. Longoria said he has seen many more pitches in on his hands since returning.
"I felt like guys were busting me in harder," he said. "Hopefully I can make them pay and they'll get out of there. … I think a couple of the pitches today were meant to be away and were just mistakes."
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