Evan Longoria in AAA is Smart

The Tampa Bay (not Devil) Rays front office deserves a pat on the back for making a move that fans hate. Evan Longoria might not only be the Rays best prospect, but the best offensive prospect in baseball. When it came time to make roster moves the Rays sent Longoria to Triple-A Durham, even though Longoria is a leading Rookie of the Year candidate. By not promoting Longoria until after May 1st the Rays will be able to keep him under contract until 2014, as opposed to 2013 if he started the season in the Major League. It is no secret that the Rays will not be a playoff team this year (or at least until 2010), but with the amazing young players they have, they are looking like the Cleveland Indians of the 1990’s. Is one month now really worth taking the chance of a top player becoming a free agent a year early when you could be a World Series contender?

Evan Longoria will be in a battle with Jacoby Ellsbury, Daric Barton, and Joba Chamberlin for the American League Rookie of the Year award. Starting the season in the minors will hurt Longoria’s chances, but the twenty-two year old can benefit from a few more Triple-A at bats. Longoria is an amazing hitter, but he still struggles at time with off-speed pitches. Last year Jacoby Ellsbury could have started the year in Boston but he was sent to Double-A. Ellsbury hit well over .400, and then was promoted to Triple-A Pawtucket where he became a more polished hitter. When the Red Sox needed Ellsbury he was ready, as he was a major contributor to the Sox stretch run and World Series Championship. Longoria would fit in the Rays lineup on opening day, but is a chance at winning the ROY really worth keeping him in the big leagues? No. Longoria will be a better player when he is recalled, and the Rays will not be missing anything without him in the lineup.

The Rays may have an abundance of talent, but it will take some time before they are able to pass the Yankees, Red Sox, and Blue Jays for a chance at the playoffs. Giving their young talent a chance to mature will only benefit the franchise in the long run. Fans may want to see prospects in the Show ASAP, especially when the playoffs don’t seem like an option. Too many players have been rushed to the Majors, only to struggle and never live up to their potential. Giving Evan Longoria more time in the Minors may annoy fans, but when the Rays are in the playoffs in a few years due to Longoria, that one month wait back in 2008 will seem like a great idea.

The Heat Isn't On

Every year at least one NBA team is accused of packing it in early in an attempt to gain a better draft pick. This year is no different, as the Miami Heat are officially in shutdown mode. It will be very difficult for Miami not to finish with worst record in the NBA, and the franchise has made sure they will have the most ping pong balls come lottery day. From trades to injuries to coaching issues, the Heat have had a dysfunctional season, a far cry from their championship season two years ago.

Miami started their makeover by freeing themselves of Shaq’s monster contract in exchange for Shawn Marion, who will likely opt out of his contract after this season, which will free up exorbitant amounts of cap room for next year and beyond. Dwyane Wade has been the lone bright spot for Miami this year, and now he has opted to sit out the rest of the year with an ailing left knee. With injuries to Wade, and at least one player at every position, the Heat are having trouble filling out their roster, and now are trying to scrounge up healthy bodies to occupy the empty seats on the bench. The coup de grace lies with coach Pat Riley, who just announced he was leaving the bench during the season to scout potential draft picks. Are things really that bad down in South Beach?

Riley’s move may be a necessary evil when you are head coach as well as the man that makes the roster moves, but this decision reeks of abandoning all hope. Shouldn’t one of the best coaches in NBA history at least try to portray that he cares about his team in the long and short term? Even if Riley is leaving the bench just for a few weeks, and is doing so to scout potential draft picks, doesn’t that just scream of desperation? Why have scouts if your coach has to leave during the year to evaluate talent? This reminds be of the Cincinnati Bengals when they wouldn’t spend the money to hire enough scouts to properly evaluate talent.

As bad as this move looks it does make a modicum of sense in a convoluted way. As long as the Heat continue their losing ways they will have a top four pick in the next NBA draft. The general consensus among draft experts is that the top talents are all freshmen and sophomores, and only one player (Memphis guard Derrick Rose) has stated that he plans on returning to college. The best player at the moment looks to be Kansas State forward Michael Beasley, who looks like Shawn Marion with more upside. Guards such as Rose, USC star O.J. Mayo, and Indiana’s Eric Gordon are point guards by definition, but both Mayo and Gordon are shoot first guards. With Dwyane Wade as a shoot first combo guard, does Gordon or Mayo really fit? The most talented big men (DeAndre Jordan, Brook Lopez, Anthony Lopez, and Bake Griffin) all project to be good to great players, but none are instant impact players. With so much up in the air with this draft class, all potential picks need to be scrutinized. Depending on which players enter the draft, it is possible this lottery will contain no upperclassmen, or even any player older than twenty. Teams will need to know exactly what they are getting, and the player they draft will be the player that a franchise can be built around. For those reasons it is tough to fault Pat Riley for wanting to make sure he knows his investment inside and out. Being an NBA General Manager or Head Coach are more than full time jobs, and one man trying to fill both roles is a recipe for disaster, even for one of the best minds in NBA history.