Tuesday, August 31, 2010
GOODBYE, JEFF FRANCOEUR.
So Jeff Francoeur is gone, traded to the Rangers, who, quite frankly, deserve better. People liked him for artificial reasons that had nothing to do with what he did on the field. He knew what to say and had an above average command of spin, which guaranteed you always saw good quotes from him. The beat writers loved him because he always had a smile and a quote. That’s not a good attitude, that’s savvy business. I don’t fault him for that but I do fault fans who don’t know the difference. He was a liability, and although he had a tremendous arm, I won’t remember the throws, I’ll remember every time the bases were loaded with 2 outs and Francoeur was up next. I will remember his agent using the royal “we” and taking his case to the media about not playing every day.
It shouldn’t matter that he’s gone. We shouldn’t even care as much as we do. It is sad that losing a player is a glimmer of light.
Now watch, he will go and pull a Barajas on us. Oh wait, no, he won’t.
Update: Thankfully, Baseball Think Factory has captured my feelings on Mr. Francoeur perfectly. Must read.
Hi Caryn, first time/long time, love the blog a lot!
I have to disagree on Frenchie. I know he blew it at the plate a lot. But I thought the arm was worth keeping. I actually will remember the throws because more often than not, they were effective.
Granted, the “Mrs. David Wright” crowd latched onto him, so I see that a lot of the hype was just that—hype. But in another year where so many things went wrong (again), I thought Francouer brought some consistency, if only to the defense. And for the record, I would have kept Barajas and bumped Blanco.
All the same, I definitely appreciate your take on things, and hope that the trade works out for all involved. There’s always next year ...