Frustrated by Maikel Franco? Pete Mackanin and the third baseman are, too | Bob Brookover
Francos struggle might be the worst possible thing that could happen to the Phillies because they have no other third-base prospects.
If you've been frustrated watching Maikel Franco swing and miss at outside pitches he could hit with a 10-foot pole, you are not alone. Pete Mackanin is obviously a member of that club and it continues to influence the manager's thinking when he fills out his lineup card.
Franco, one of the central figures in the Phillies' effort to rejuvenate the franchise, was benched for the second game of the team's series against the Colorado Rockies after looking clueless on strikeouts in his final two at-bats Monday. Mackanin removed Franco from the cleanup spot in the batting order a couple of weeks ago and this was the fourth time in 12 games the manager benched his third baseman.
Of all the things that have gone wrong for the Phillies through the first seven weeks - and it's a long list - the failure of Franco might be the most concerning. He's the young hitter they want to build around. He's the guy with power to all fields.
Right now, however, he's a .221 hitter with a .281 on-base percentage and a .657 OPS, and that does not cut it.
"At this level, you've got to produce," Mackanin said. "You want to play, you've got to hit and they have to understand that. Nobody is here on scholarship."
The manager's take on Franco on Tuesday was not entirely in line with comments made by Matt Klentak the night before when the general manager was asked about the team's lengthy list of struggling hitters.
"I'm not ready to call it regression," Klentak said. "I think there's been a lack of consistency on our team in general. Some players more than others. There's been a lack of consistency - but, especially for young players, two months is a relatively small sample size to categorize it as regression."
In Franco's case, there actually has been consistency, but only in a disturbing way. Since May 1 of last season, he has hit .241 with a .697 OPS. His batting average has been at .260 or above for just 11 of his last 160 games and his on-base percentage has been above .310 for just 26 of his last 160 games.
Mackanin said Franco's prolonged struggle has surprised him.
"Yes," the manager said. "Befuddled is a good word. As much as he works in the cage and on the field in BP and does things right, when he gets in the game his head is still flying and his bat is coming out of the zone."
Franco, 24, is even more frustrated than his manager. He was also disappointed that he was not in the lineup Tuesday, but he seemed to understand why.
"Obviously I'm ready to play," he said. "I'm coming in expecting to play, but I saw the lineup and I'm not in there, so I just have to try . . . to do my work and try to get better."
Franco understands what pitchers are doing to him, but he cannot prevent it from happening. He felt as though he had taken a step in the right direction by putting together an eight-game hitting streak before Monday's game, but then was lost in the wilderness against the Rockies.
"Sometimes I feel good, but sometimes, like [Monday] night I feel weird," he said. "My approach was not there and I didn't see the pitch really good."
Franco's temptress is a slider away. He knows its evil intentions but chases it anyway.
"That's the out pitch they keep throwing me," he said. "I have to work to make an adjustment in that zone. It's tough. I know what I have to do to get better, but at the end of the day when they go out there I keep doing the same thing."
And it's driving a lot of people insane, including the manager. Mackanin said he was not sure how long he would keep Franco on the bench, but third base is a position devoid of prospects for the Phillies so he remains their only in-house option for the near future.
That's why Franco's struggle might be the worst thing that has happened to the Phillies in these first seven weeks even though there are certainly other contenders.
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