Thursday, March 28, 2024

Who is Wand Franco?Before Rays debuted, four things about the best prospects for MLB

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The moment baseball fans have been waiting for is finally here.

The Rays announced on Sunday that Major League Baseball’s best prospect Wander Franco will join the major league clubs in Tuesday’s series with the Red Sox.

In a season where many top players are flourishing, Franco will become the latest big name to enter the major leagues. Last year he did not rank at the top of the list in 2018, when a young Blue Jays named Vladimir Guerrero ranked first in prospects, and the paddle shortstop named Fernando Tatis was ranked second. , According to the ranking of MLB Pipeline. Previous year, Shohei Ohtani ranked first and Ronald Acuna Jr. ranked sixth.

more: Best draft prospects for the 2021 University World Series

When Franco prepares to put on the uniform of the Rays for the first time, here is all the information you need to know about the game’s latest super prospects.

Franco is five talents

This expression is often thrown out, but in all respects, this is the case for Franco.

On the 20 to 80 scouting scale of baseball, List of Major League Baseball Pipelines All five of Franco’s tools have a score of 50 or above. His power has reached level 60, his arms and speed have reached 55, his defensive tool is 50, and his hit tool is 80-this is a rare feat.

Franco certainly got these results. In the past five games, he has been in a three-pointer state in Triple-A games, four of which have been stolen. 2019 is the last minor league season before the coronavirus suspension in 2020. Franco recorded 18 losses in 114 matches in the singles and singles promotion.

power? Franco, who was hit by the switch, used his lightning-like hands to produce a large number of balls from both sides of the board. As a 17-year-old rookie, he hit 11 homers in 61 games and hit 0.587. Subsequently, he hit 9 home runs at the age of 18 in 2019. At the age of 20, he hit 7 home runs in 38 games of Triple-A.

These are not cheap home runs either.

In an era where batters hit the ball at record speed, Franco was a steady contact batter. His 11.6% strikeout rate is the highest in his career, and this is the first time he has reached double digits or exceeded his walking rate. He is praised not only for his ability to touch on courts in the strike zone, but also for his ability to identify courts outside the zone. In 213 minor league games, he has 95 walks and only 74 strikeouts.

Putting all these together, his career slash is 0.333/.400/.538.

Franco’s biggest question mark has always been his gloves. He is a natural shortstop, but the Rays have tried him at second and third bases. They promoted Taylor Walls earlier this season, and he is known for having one of the best gloves in the shortstop prospect.

But the scout thinks Franco’s arm is above average and says he can handle short distances. However, if he needs to leave this position, he can use his speed on hot corners or trapezoids as a far above average player.

He is young

When Franco makes his debut in Major League Baseball this week, he will become the youngest player in the game.

He entered the major leagues very quickly: he never played more than 62 games at a minor level, and he skipped the double A altogether.

And he didn’t emerge out of thin air.Before Otani announced that he would join a major league team in the 2018 season, Franco was listed as Major League Baseball pipeline as the best international prospect May sign with a major league club in 2017. According to data from MLB Pipeline, he signed with Guangguang with a bonus of US$3.825 million on July 2, 2017, when he was only 16 years old.

When they first came into contact with minors, many top international prospects were struggling, but Franco proved early on that he can handle pitching in the United States and quickly put himself in the discussion of the best prospects for the game.

He comes from a family of baseball

Like Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio and Cody Bellinger, Franco has a baseball pedigree. Like Guerrero, Tatis, and Acuna, he has the same name as his relatives.

Franco’s father, Wander Franco, was a minor league player in the 1990s. His elder brothers Wander Javier Franco and Wander Alexander Franco have been playing for the past ten years. Javier Franco started with the Royals and ended with the Giants in 2018. Alexander Franco started with the Astros and ended with the Giants in 2019, According to ESPNWander Samuel Franco, the Rays prospect who was promoted on Tuesday, will be the first of his immediate family members to enter the major leagues.

But Franco is not the only person in the family who plays professionally in the United States. Uncle Willie and Uncle Eric Abal spent some time in the majors. Willie played three of the five seasons with the Rays. , Eric spent 10 of his 12 years with the Angels.

He was compared to Vlad Jr.

Inevitably, the comparison will be made when two young prospects soar through minors and reach a consensus first position.

Guerrero and Franco can easily understand why. Both are highly touted international signatories, and they quickly showed off some of the best hitting tools scouts have seen on minors. As players who can compete for the batting championship, they usually get 80 points. Both players are organized in AL East and both play on the left side of the infield, which does no harm.

The difference is often the overall packaging and the better batsman. Franco can do anything, even if it’s not very good, and Guerrero is always considered a below-average runner and defender, he may also happen to be the next Miguel Card in the batsman’s penalty area. Brera.

MLB Pipeline asks executives Decide which player is the best within the league in 2020. Franco won the most votes as a better overall player, and Guerrero won the victory as a better hitter.

It is also important to remember that potential customers like Franco may not take off immediately. Guerrero was an excellent batsman in the first two seasons of the major leagues, but many fans questioned whether he was overrated. Now, he is one of the front runners of AL MVP, and he is still only 22 years old.

MLB fans who have not paid attention to minors can make up their minds. The Rays and Jays will play in Buffalo from July 2nd to 4th and St. Petersburg from July 9th to 11th.




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