MLB trade rumors: Dodgers could be looking at Evan Longoria, per report

Alex Novick

MLB trade rumors: Dodgers could be looking at Evan Longoria, per report image

The Dodgers' front office are not ones to shy away from taking on a large contract. That's why rumors of them acquiring Evan Longoria and his six-year, $100 million contract kicking in next season do not seem too far-fetched.

According to a report from Jon Paul Morosi of MLB.com, the Dodgers and Rays are discussing a possible trade, and Longoria may be a part of those talks. There's a connection between the two teams, as Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers' president of baseball operations, had a strong 11-year run in the Rays front office.

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Longoria is in the midst one of his best seasons at the age of 30, after a couple of sub-par years for his standards. The third baseman is batting .289 with 24 doubles and 50 RBI, while his 21 homers set a pace for what would easily be a career-high 37. Longoria has played in all but two of his teams' games this year, and has put an injury-prone label far in the rear-view mirror after missing only four games over the prior three seasons. 

The Dodgers current third baseman Justin Turner has hit .325 with 10 home runs over this last 30 games, which is part of what makes any Longo trade unlikely to happen until this offseason when Turner is a free agent. At that point Los Angeles would likely be more attracted to invest in the flashier Longoria, who is one year younger than Turner and also a Southern California native.

The Dodgers proved their willingness to inherit major contracts via trade in August of 2012 when they took on over $260 million committed to Josh Beckett, Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford from the Red Sox. However, that was not under the Friedman regime. 

Alex Novick

Alex Novick Photo

Alex is an assistant managing editor at The Sporting News.