ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WWSB) – It was a memorable day at the ballpark at Tropicana Field on Sunday, as the Rays bestowed an honor on a franchise icon that was “Longo-verdue.”
The Rays’ three-game series with Seattle was special for three big reasons.
For one, it was the final stretch of the first half of the season leading into the All-Star Break.
The second was that Tampa Bay had a chance to sweep the visiting Mariners and extend its lead in the American League East division over the Yankees.
And reason number three – a celebration of the Rays’ legendary number three, former third baseman Evan Longoria.
On Saturday evening, the team inducted Longoria into the Rays Hall of Fame with a special on field ceremony.
On Sunday, ‘Longo-Weekend’ continued, as the team retired the iconic number three in the upper deck section of the stadium, next to the numbers of Don Zimmer, Wade Boggs and Jackie Robinson.
As for the game, that left a little something to be desired for Rays’ fans.
The Mariners had a big three-run second inning to take the early lead, then added a solo homer in the fourth inning from Weston Wilson to go up 4-0. They followed that up with a three-run blast from another former Tampa Bay Ray in the house, Randy Arozarena, giving the Mariners a commanding 7-0 advantage.
The Rays would add two runs in the eighth inning on a two-run shot from Jonathan Aranda, but the Mariners would go on to win this one 8-2.
The real highlight of the night and the weekend didn’t come off the bats of Aranda or Arozarena, but rather in recognizing one of the greatest to ever put on a Rays uniform, and now knowing that no one else who ever suits up for the Rays will ever wear the iconic number three again.
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