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Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Francoeur: I will not fail again
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Spring training came early for Jeff Francoeur this year. (Or next year, as you see it.) As soon as he got off the Braves’ plane from Houston, he was on the road to Athens, where it would begin. Athens is where he checked in and went to work on his body with a physical therapist.
After a season of a .239 batting average, only 11 home runs and a disturbing number of strikeouts, he went in search of the former Francoeur who had brought many a crowd to its feet at Turner Field. His game had made some recovery in the closing days, to the point that he had been moved to cleanup in the batting order against the Astros. Then he struck out three times in the last game.
“What happened to me this year will not happen again,” he said, with a steely glint in his eyes. He had checked into the Disney World camp at a plumpish 238 pounds, a figure unbecoming him. He had been wed in the offseason and perhaps grew a little fat and happy as a husband.
“I weigh 218 now, always my game weight, and I’ve got to get the rest of me in baseball shape. Nobody looked forward to the end of this season more than I did.”
For the first time in his life he heard boos, in his hometown, from people who had once adored him. “I had never failed like I did this year. I’ve always succeeded in what I did. I’ve never known what it is to fail,” he said with feeling. “This will not happen again, I promise.”
Before the 2007 season, the Braves had offered Francoeur and catcher Brian McCann extended contracts for something like $24 million over six years (I don’t guarantee these numbers, but they’re close), a practice eschewed by John Schuerholz when he was general manager. Presumably, this was Frank Wren’s deal as Schuerholz’s successor.
McCann took it. Francoeur turned it down. There was speculation then that this was a situation that bore heavily on his sagging season, but don’t suggest that to him. “Not at all. I have more faith in myself than that. I’ve always succeeded in what I did. I’ve never been known to fail,” he said, in a voice firm and gritty. “I guess I took a lot for granted. If I could persevere through this, I can persevere through anything.”
After all the lifting and physical grind, he’ll move into some concentrated hitting exercises, tuning his swing toward the spring. “I’m looking forward to next spring right now,” he said. “I want to have a season my wife can enjoy more than this one has been.”
In other words, this is not just for himself, but all those out there who have become addicted to “Frenchy,” a hometown kid they had become attached to. They knew him first as a football star at Parkview High, and a chance at two careers on a major level — football on a Clemson scholarship, or baseball with the Braves and a gracious bonus. He is certain he made the right choice, and those who love him, and having been among the booers, feel the same way.
Can’t wait for the spring after the gloomiest season the Braves have had since 1990.
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