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Franco lumbers to an inside-the-park home run

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Maikel Franco is not a fast man. He runs like a catcher, but that is fine because the Phillies pay him to hit baseballs far distances. That is why, as Franco entered the Phillies clubhouse Saturday afternoon, his teammates laughed.

CLEARWATER, Fla. - Maikel Franco is not a fast man. He runs like a catcher, but that is fine because the Phillies pay him to hit baseballs far distances. That is why, as Franco entered the Phillies clubhouse Saturday afternoon, his teammates laughed.

"Hey," Franco said, "how about my speed?"

He hit two home runs in a 6-5 Phillies win over the Yankees at Spectrum Field. One ball flew into the stands. Another lodged underneath the outfield wall for an inside-the-park homer in a classic only-in-spring-training moment.

"The first one, I hit it really well," Franco said. "A slider right there in the middle. I put good contact on it. The second one, I had to run too much."

Franco rounded the bases in 19.7 seconds. The ball bounced seven times to the warning track in center field. It nicked Tyler Wade's glove and disappeared under the padding. Wade, wearing No. 82, is a minor-league shortstop trying to learn center field. He put his arms in the air to signal a dead ball.

But the umpire never made such a call. Franco stopped at second base. Phillies third-base coach Juan Samuel yelled at Franco to keep running. He did. Wade bent over to search for the ball. He panicked and grabbed the ball.

Franco scored standing up.

"I mean," Franco said, "I really don't know what happened."

Had he ever hit an inside-the-park homer?

"Never," Franco said. "That was the first time."

Did he ever expect to hit one?

"Not really," Franco said. "Not at all. But that happened."

Morgan impresses

Adam Morgan began his push for a spot in the Phillies bullpen by pitching a pair of scoreless innings. The lefthander allowed two hits, walked none, and struck out one. Morgan has started all but two of his major-league games, but his best route back with the Phillies is likely in the bullpen. Morgan said it doesn't matter what role he has.

"My mind-set right now is just trying to show whoever needs to be seen that I can be an asset to this team. Anywhere. I'm just keeping it simple that way," Morgan said. "Not trying to go out for that fifth spot. If the fifth spot opens up, I'd be more than willing to do that. If they want to put me in the bullpen, I'd be more than willing to do that. If they want me to be the backup catcher, I'll be the backup catcher."

Extra bases

Brock Stassi won the game with a run-scoring single in the ninth. ... Two runs scored on one Mark Appel wild pitch, but the former No. 1 overall pick recovered after that. He struck out three in two innings. ... It looks as if Ricardo Pinto will become a reliever; he pitched just one inning in his spring debut.