PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. -- There are plenty of current players featured in the promotional schedule the Rays released on Monday night, but the real highlights are focused on the greatest player in franchise history.
The Rays will honor longtime third baseman Evan Longoria with a weekend of events dubbed “Longo’s Legacy Weekend” from July 11-12 as Tampa Bay hosts the Mariners at Tropicana Field. They will induct Longoria into the Rays Hall of Fame on July 11, as previously announced, and revealed on Monday that they will retire his No. 3 jersey on July 12.
The weekend will also include a pair of Longoria giveaway items for the first 10,000 fans in attendance: a snapback hat on July 11 and a bobblecard on July 12. Rather than wearing their City Connect uniforms, the Rays will wear their home white uniforms in Longoria’s honor on July 11.
It seemed inevitable that the Rays would eventually retire Longoria’s No. 3 jersey, especially after he signed a ceremonial one-day contract last June to officially retire as a Ray. Nobody has worn the number for Tampa Bay since Longoria’s last season with the Rays in 2017.
But it is still a notable recognition, considering there are only three retired numbers hanging inside Tropicana Field: Jackie Robinson’s 42, Wade Boggs’ 12 and Don Zimmer’s 66.
Longoria will be the sixth player inducted into the Rays Hall of Fame since it was established in 2023 to celebrate the organization’s 25th anniversary. The first class consisted of Boggs, Carl Crawford and Zimmer, who was inducted posthumously. The 2024 class included Fred McGriff and late Rays radio broadcaster Dave Wills.
The club put a pause on its inductions last year, as they were forced out of Tropicana Field and played their home games at George M. Steinbrenner Field, but announced that Longoria would be inducted at some point this year. Last May, former principal owner Stuart Sternberg said in a statement that Longoria “embodies what it means to be a Tampa Bay Ray” and that “he, more than anyone, helped transform the Devil Rays into the Rays.”
Longoria was a three-time All-Star, the 2008 American League Rookie of the Year, a three-time Gold Glove Award winner and a 2009 AL Silver Slugger Award winner during his time with the Rays. He was the face of the franchise during the club’s worst-to-first turnaround in 2008 and throughout a run of four postseason appearances from 2008-13, and he was responsible for one of the two greatest moments in team history: the walk-off homer that secured an AL Wild Card spot in Game 162 of the 2011 season.
The Rays announced the rest of their promotional schedule for the upcoming season, with each item available to the first 10,000 fans in attendance at Tropicana Field. The giveaways begin with a schedule magnet that will be handed out when the Rays return to the Trop for their home opener against the Cubs on April 6.
The full giveaway schedule, with photos, can be seen at RaysBaseball.com/Giveaways. Among the highlights:
- April 25 vs. Twins: Tropicana Field Tour T-shirt
- May 2 vs. Giants: Tropicana Field Light-Up Replica
- May 30 vs. Angels: Junior Caminero City Connect Bobblehead
- June 27 vs. D-backs: Chandler Simpson “Bobblelegs”
- July 25 vs. Guardians: Devil Rays Retro Snapback Hat
- Aug. 15 vs. Orioles: Flappy Boi Bobble
- Sept. 12 vs. Astros: Rays Hockey Jersey