Phillies Maikel Franco Sprains Ankle
By John Town
The Philadelphia Phillies star 3rd baseman suffered an injury during Wednesday afternoon’s series finale in Detroit, and his status is questionable for the weekend.
In Wednesday’s win over the Tigers, Maikel Franco sprained his ankle sliding into second in the seventh inning.
When the Phillies came out to play defense in the bottom of the inning, Andres Blanco had moved over to 3rd base and Cesar Hernandez came on in Franco’s spot in the batting order, playing 2nd base.
According to manager Pete Mackanin, Franco told 3rd base coach Juan Samuel immediately after the play that he had sprained his ankle. Franco had a limp after the play, and Mackanin said the Phillies will be cautious with their 23-year old budding star in the coming days.
However, Franco seems confident that he will play, per Jim Salisbury.
Franco said ankle sprain is mild. Expects to play Friday.
— Jim Salisbury (@JSalisburyNBCS) May 25, 2016
Franco’s injury came during the Phillies two-run 7th inning. Peter Bourjous hit a solo home run to get the first run, and Tommy Joseph had a sacrifice fly later in the frame, with Franco and Galvis on first and third.
On the Joseph sac fly, Galvis scored and Franco advanced to 2nd on an errant throw by Cameron Maybin. When sliding into the bag, the ankle injury occurred.
Prior to the injury, Franco was having a solid game, knocking two singles in four plate appearances.
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With an important series upcoming against the Chicago Cubs, it would be good news indeed if Franco will be available. The Cubs have some of the best pitching in MLB, especially at home in Wrigley Field.
Franco has a .298/.351/.595 batting split on the road. Without Franco, the Phillies would lose a key bat in the heart of their already weak batting order.
Cameron Rupp had a similar injury after a collision at the plate after this gem of a throw by Tyler Goeddel.
Rupp missed a couple of games, but the play at the plate was much more severe than Franco’s slide today. Hopefully Franco will avoid the fate of Rupp, and won’t miss any time. We’ll continue to monitor this key injury situation for you here at TBOH.