posted July 4, 2008
) Photo by Tim Evearitt Jeff Francoeur at bat in Thursday's loss to the Phillies at Turner Field. Click to enlarge photo. |
Multiple sources have confirmed that Francouer will begin playing with Mississippi on Friday night. All expectations are that he'll remain with that club until after the All-Star break.
Francoeur has hit .234 with a .287 on-base percentage and .374 slugging percentage this season.
One American League scout said last week that he had never seen another player who was struggling so much from a mechanical perspective.
Earlier this season, Francoeur admitted that he wasn't enjoying the game as much as he had in his previous three Major League seasons. Things haven't been much better recently as he has hit just .121 with a .183
on-base percentage and .136 slugging percentage in his last 18 games.
When MLB.com first reported on Wednesday that the Braves had discussed sending Francoeur back to the Minors, Francoeur understandably reacted in a shocked and hurt manner. Just last year he had won a Gold Glove and two years ago he was on Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.
But after meeting with Braves general manager Frank Wren and manager Bobby Cox after Thursday's game, Francoeur accepted this transaction in the same manner that pitchers Dontrelle Willis and Brett Myers accepted their demotions to the Minors earlier this year.
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Adapted from MLB.com
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