It’s been two games into his career and that hasn’t stopped the media or people on social media from calling him the next Mike Trout. In his first major league game, Franco hit a three-run, game-tying home run along with a double. In the second game, he helped the Rays get out to an early lead with a walk. It wasn’t just an ordinary walk though.
He watched three fastballs barely off the edge of the plate for that walk. He’s clearly got a good eye at the plate. In his next at bat, he beat out a grounder to second, sprinting as fast as he could to beat it out. He was finally out in the sixth inning but worked another walk in his final at-bat. Later in that inning, he went first to third on a single, showing off his speed but also his baseball IQ, knowing he could get from first to third on the base hit.
Franco was made for this. He had the logo of the MLB tattooed on his neck and wore number five in honor of Albert Pujols. Rays manager Kevin Cash can’t believe what he’s watching. He spoke about Franco’s first two days in the big leagues after defeating the Red Sox 8-2. “He’s kind of beyond his years. To think that he’s 20 years old and he’s doing that.
It’s one thing to be so athletically advanced and talented in that aspect, but to do the little things … just shows you know how good he is and how good he’s gonna be.”If there was no worry about service time and arbitration, Franco would’ve been up with the big league club in April. But to hold onto Franco one more season, the Rays had to wait until mid-June to call him up.
In Triple-A, he hit .315 in 39 games, being seven years younger than the average triple A player. Usually, the Rays don’t sell out Tropicana Field but with Franco on the roster, things have changed. Red Sox manager, Alex Cora admitted that he’s never seen this place so packed and loud during the regular season “This building behind him, I’ve never seen anything like that in this building,” said Boston manager Alex Cora after the game.
Obviously, it’s too early to compare Franco to anyone or anything. He himself likely wants to save the comparisons. Sometimes players come up from Triple A and dominate but hit a sophomore slump. Earlier this season, Jarred Kelenic made his MLB debut for the Mariners and sent a home run flying in his debut. But as the season continued, Kelenic struggled and the highly touted prospect had to be sent back down to the minors. That had to be quite embarrassing for Kelenic regardless if he was just brought up too quickly.
When he was sent down, his slash line was .096/.185/.193 and didn’t contribute a hit in 37 plate appearances. Kelenic was already overhyped due to a failed trade by the New York Mets. There was already so much talk surrounding him for no reason just based off a poor trade by the Mets, bringing in Robinson Cano as a major piece of a deal that sent Kelenic to the Mariners. Franco has played just two games and a slump might occur eventually.
Every player slumps. However, if he’s able to watch bad pitches without chasing he’ll be in good shape. If he’s able to run out ground balls and get infield hits, he’ll be just fine. The Rays know how to develop talent while most ball clubs really don’t. Franco looks like the next stud in the MLB. But it’s so early and we can’t give him that title just yet. For now, just sit back and watch. Enjoy the show and enjoy a 20-year-old playing like a 30-year-old veteran. Because in his first couple of games, that’s what he looks like
