After several years of disappointing offensive production, Maikel Franco is making himself a mainstay in the Phillies lineup.
At the trade deadline this year, there was plenty of external pressure on the Phillies to make an upgrade on the left side of the infield. While they made one upgrade by adding Asdrubal Cabrera, they got another at third base with Maikel Franco elevating his performance.
Franco was seemingly on the outs earlier this year with J.P. Crawford starting at third base and plenty of rumored interest in a third baseman. When Crawford hit the disabled list, Franco jumped back in the lineup, and he hit the ground running.
Since June 23, Franco has been on fire at the plate. Not including Sunday, he has a .328/.372/.602 line with nine home runs, eight doubles, and 20 runs scored and batted in during this time. He has a 154 wRC+ in this span; only Rhys Hoskins has been better.
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After going 2-for-4 with an RBI in Sunday’s game, Franco has 18 home runs, 57 runs batted in, .276 batting average, .802 OPS, and .336 wOBA overall this season. He is tied with Odubel Herrera for the team lead in batting average and is second only to Hoskins in OPS.
Franco finding himself at the plate and becoming a mainstay in the lineup couldn’t have come at a better time for both himself and the team. Philadelphia’s offense came alive during their weekend series with the Marlins, and Franco played a huge part in doing so. They are holding a thin lead in the NL East and need their offense to continue producing. Franco’s continued production will greatly help the team.
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For Franco himself, he is earning himself a job next season. If this offensive production continues, his numbers will be better than his standout rookie year in a much larger sample size. We have been looking for Franco to hit like this since that rookie season, and now he is.
This may force the team to adjust their offseason plans. Even though they didn’t acquire Manny Machado at the trade deadline, they will pursue him heavily in free agency. Other strong third base options will also be available for the team this offseason. However, Franco’s offensive performance this year will give the club pause about going after a top-tier third baseman. They may instead upgrade at another position or make Franco a trade piece.
Either way, for the rest of the season, it will be hard to keep Franco out of the lineup with the way he is hitting.