Longoria's stolen AK-47 jolts Rays fans

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., March 30 (UPI) -- A burglary may cost Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria some of his reputation since an AK-47 assault rifle was among his possessions stolen, fans say.

A house rented by the Rays' star third baseman and teammates David Price and Reid Brignac in Port Charlotte, Fla., was broken into Saturday while they were playing a spring training game, authorities said.

The many valuable items stolen included iPads, watches, a huge television, and Longoria's rifle -- the Russian-designed AK-47 used by revolutionaries, terrorists and criminals worldwide.

Some fans were shocked.

Cindy McMullen of St. Petersburg told The St. Petersburg Times: "My first thought was, 'Oh, Evan, say it ain't so.'"

"The AK-47 just comes with such a malicious reputation," said Tom Topping of Clearwater.

Longoria, 25, has been Rookie of the Year, an All-Star every season, a Silver Slugger winner and twice a Gold Glove winner. With many product endorsements, he was named recently by Nielsen and E-Poll as the fifth-most marketable professional baseball player.

Darin David, a sports marketing expert from Dallas, said Longoria would not suffer "if it (the stolen assault rifle) moves out of the news cycle pretty quickly and kind of comes and goes."

On Monday, Longoria called the AK-47, which he owned legally, "a personal item."