Offense
Moustakas and Franco have extremely similar slash lines this season. Moustakas is hitting .261/.317/.477 compared to Franco’s .258/.302/.442. The slight edge goes to Moustakas, but he is not a significantly better batter this year. His numbers are also slightly higher than his career slash line, so there is always the chance of regression to the mean.
If you factor in last season, the numbers begin to change, and that’s what the Phillies are likely looking at. From the start of the 2017 season until now, Moustakas is 23 points higher than Franco in batting average, 24 points higher in OBP, and 73 points higher in slugging percentage.
The biggest disparity between the two players comes in the power department. Between this year and last year, Moustakas has hit 54 home runs. Maikel Franco, in the same period of time, has hit 34.
It is easy to see why the Phils are interested in the Royals’ third baseman when you look beyond the 2018 season. He would be a significant upgrade in the power department. Even if the rest of the numbers are similar to Franco, the power alone is enough to win the Phillies a couple more games.
Edge: Moustakas