Atlanta Braves RF: Pick Your Poison
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by user Timothy Moreland(Bball3345)
Last season, Jeff Francoeur impressed after a midseason call-up. In 70 games, the rookie rightfielder slugged .549 with a .300 BA. He also showed off his tremendous arm strength, gunning down 13 runners. Both above average defense and offense from a 21-year-old seemed to foreshadow big numbers. Coming into 2006, Francoeur was the obvious choice for starting rightfielder. Plate discipline was the only piece of the youngster's game that had yet to develop. In 257 ABs in 2005, he walked only 11 times. He did not draw a walk until 127 at bats into the year. This fault has multiplied in 2006.
Fifty-seven games into the current season, Jeff is hitting .247 with an unnacceptable .260 OBP. A player who does not walk relies solely on their batting average to get on base. As long as his average is below .300, Francoeur hurts the offense. In his 257 ABs last year, Francoeur managed to hit 35 extra bases. These power numbers have dropped as he has only 21 XBH in 239 at bats this season. Lacking on-base ability and power, Francoeur's offense has dropped below the standards of a starting major leauguer.
Along with a drop in offense, his defense has noticeably declined. In only ten less games, Francoeur has made the same amount of errors, 5, as last season. Also, his number of assists has dropped from 13 to 2.
Without trying to pour on the insults, the running game has not been favorable to Jeff either. In 5 attempts, he has been caught every time. Terrible offense + below average defense + bad baserunning = a trip back to the minors. More time is needed to help fix his approach at the plate.
Now the question becomes, who will replace Francoeur in right? The most obvious choice would be moving backup leftfielder Matt Diaz to right. So far, he has a .329 OBP with a .532 SLG in 79 ABs. Unfortunately, his ability to take a walk has been worse than Francoeur's. Diaz is yet to draw a base on balls this season. At 28, this is the prime of Diaz's career, and he appears to be the safe way to go. Not to mention, his defense has been terrific in leftfield with 3 assists in very limited time, while possessing above average range. It seems as if Diaz can fill in while Francoeur works out his hitting in AAA.
The main issue is this, Francoeur has been a drain on the offense the entire season. Such a problem should come as no surprise, as his terrible plate discipline indicated this might happen. Although too early to rely on, a split has shown up in Francoeur's numbers against lefties and righties. In his young career, he has hit .357 vs. LHPs and only .249 vs. RHP's. If Atlanta is unwilling to send Francoeur down, the solution may be to go outside the organization and find a platoon partner for Francoeur. Either way, this drain must be plugged.
Date
Mon 06/05/06, 2:21 pm EST
