San Francisco Giants: Evan Longoria showing signs of life offensively

The San Francisco Giants are likely stuck with Evan Longoria for the duration of his contract, so seeing him finally get things going offensively is a welcome development.

Evan Longoria is owed $44 million by the San Francisco Giants over the next three years, on top of what’s left of his $12.5 million salary this year.

He also has a $13 million club option for 2023 that carries a $5 million buyout.

When he was acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays prior to the 2018 season, the Giants were making a significant investment in what they hoped would be an All-Star caliber player.

Instead, he hit .244/.281/.413 for a career-low 90 OPS+ during his first season with the team.

Things went from bad to worse over the first two months of the 2019 campaign. The 33-year-old was hitting .213/.300/.391 with six home runs and 19 RBI when the calendar turned from May to June.

After going 2-for-4 on Tuesday, he is now hitting .344/.371/.500 with two doubles and one home run in 35 plate appearances so far this month.

Granted, it’s only an eight-game sample size, but he’s swinging it well right now.

He has raised his walk rate from 4.3 to 9.3 percent on the year, and that patient approach is starting to pay dividends.

His soft-contact rate is also down to 12.3 percent, his lowest mark since 2013. In other words, when he does make contact, he’s hitting the ball hard on a more consistent basis.

The Pablo Sandoval renaissance has been a fun storyline, but there’s a good chance he’ll be playing elsewhere before the 2019 season is over. With no obvious replacement in the farm system, the Giants appear to be locked into Longoria at the hot corner for the foreseeable future.

Getting more impactful offensive production from the three-time All-Star would go a long way in helping anchor what figures to be an increasingly young lineup in the years to come.

As the San Francisco Giants slip further and further out of contention, Evan Longoria’s play over the past week has been one of the few recent bright spots.