Francoeur Demotion Could Hurt Braves in Long Run
Minus a very few bright spots during the 2008 campaign, Atlanta Braves’ hometown hero Jeff Francoeur has been horrible in every sense of the word.
In his last 18 games, the right fielder is hitting just .121 with a .183 on-base percentage and .136 slugging percentage, but his struggles go back much further than just the last three weeks. During his two previous seasons in Atlanta, Francoeur built a reputation for being a clutch hitter in big situations.
Not true this year.
Francoeur is the man opposing pitchers want to see walking toward the plate when they find themselves in trouble. He has hit .121 (20-101) with runners in scoring position this year, and he is a retched 2-20 with the bases loaded.
As all fans know, players go through slumps and struggles, but this has been Andruw Jones-like (mechanical and major mental problems), and I honestly do not know how near the end is.
This is the first time he has ever faced a slump according to teammate and long time friend Brian McCann. As a baseball player myself, I understand slumping, but I cannot imagine going through my first slump while in my third big league season; his head and ego have to be the top issues the Braves look to repair.
Though the Braves decided to send him down for a couple weeks, I think a better option would have been to merely bench him for a three game series to allow the ego and mind set to mend.
According to the Brave’s brass, Francoeur will be back in the bigs immediately following the All-Star Break, but the relationship may be too far gone between the Braves and their young and beloved outfielder.
His spokesperson calls Francoeur “upset” with the Braves, which is understandable, but the parties have already had multiple problems reaching a contract agreement in the past, and I can see this do nothing but add to the problem of locking Francoeur up long term.
Francoeur is arbitration eligible at the end of this season, and it will be really interesting to see how Frank Wren and the Braves approach their young and marketable (could be) superstar. I could be way off base here with this, but I could definitely see this hurting the Braves much more than helping them in the long run.
I do think Francoeur will come back with vengeance after this spell in the minors, but I will also say this will end up putting Francoeur in a new uniform sooner rather than later. As a Braves fan I hope I am wrong, but we all shall see together.
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July 5th, 2008 at 11:22 am
[...] salute Bobby Cox and Frank Wren for their decision to send Francoeur down in spite of whatever bad blood it might cause. Francoeur’s reaction was incredibly childish, so let’s hope it was just a reaction and [...]
July 5th, 2008 at 9:28 pm
I was pretty stunned by this Braves move, but I can’t imagine how this is his first slump with the amount of pitches he swings at. His batting average showed luck last year, this year it reversed. Seems like a thing Frenchy should be used to.
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July 5th, 2008 at 11:58 pm
A quick summary and response of the posts left so far… Frank Wren said the decision was the hardest he has made in his thirty years in baseball, so I also commend him for having the gumption to do this. However, I am still not sure if it was necessary to send him down without at least trying a prolonged rest. As for this being his first slump, I can easily believe it. Everything has come to Francoeur relatively easily throughout his career. He was a god during his high school career, breezed through the Braves minor league system, and has had 2 stellar seasons in the bigs. He does indeed swing at everything, but until now he has found a way around his ugly ugly hacks. I love the way the guy plays and hope my article is wrong in every sense, but I have my reservations.
July 6th, 2008 at 4:52 am
@Grey - First thanks for the visit. Second, Vlad the Impaler is the ultimate free swinger and I’d say that the slumps he’s had the past two seasons are likely the first he’s ever experienced. Third, I saw these potentially positive numbers about Frenchy over at Yahoo’s Roto Arcade:
“Despite a downturn in HR/FB% for the fourth consecutive season, his attractive 20.8 LD% and improved strikeout (’07 K%: 20.1, ‘08: 18.6) and contact rates (’07 CT%: 73.9, ‘08: 76.6) are positive indicators that his bat could resuscitate once his confidence is renewed.”
@Junior - Because he has been a stud at every level in the past and has never had a significant slump, I think that’s the exact reason he needed more than just a prolonged rest. As I read someone in the organization say, if he rests a couple of days and is back in the lineup, he still is going to have to face major league pitching. As opposed to a trip down where he can face some less polished pitchers and hopefully dominate once again to get his confidence back.