Jeff Francoeur flew to rejoin the Braves Monday evening, relieved and happy. After three days of a minor- league stint in AA Mississippi, he was also ready to play.

"Even though it's only been three days, I feel like a new guy," Francoeur told the Journal-Constitution by phone during a layover in Chicago. "I was hoping to get there before the game. But now I'm just excited to be there and be with the guys. The only thing is, I have no clothes."

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Jeff Francoeur rejoined the Braves in Los Angeles, after a short stay in the minor leagues.

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He's got some shopping to do today in Los Angeles.

Francoeur wasn't scheduled to arrive in Los Angeles until after the Braves-Dodgers game started. He was hoping to at least pinch-hit and leave the sour taste of the minors behind.

"I'm just glad to have it over with," said Francoeur, who found out Monday morning he was going back up. "It's one of those things I'm going to forget about. It won't do me any good to think about what happened. I need to go out and swing the bat and help the team."

Francoeur left Atlanta on Friday with a .234 batting average, the weight of the world on his shoulders, and upset that he was being sent down after three years in the major leagues. He returns having hit .538 (7-for-13) in three games for Mississippi, with a triple and two RBIs.

"We worked really hard," said Francoeur, who credited Mississippi manager Phillip Wellman as well as coaches Franklin Stubbs and Leon Roberts. "We talked a little bit about mechanics, but it was mainly get back to the basics, getting back to 'see ball, hit ball.' I feel like I'm back mentally, confident, ready to go."

Francoeur went 4-for-5 on Sunday in Mississippi, including an opposite-field triple, while the Braves played a 17-inning game with the Astros and put three players on the disabled list afterward. That opened the door for Francoeur's quick return.

"He got four hits last night," manager Bobby Cox said. "And we need him."

Francoeur said he's put aside hard feelings he felt last Thursday night when the Braves told him he was going down, the same hard feelings he voiced Friday morning to the AJC.

"I understand what it was," Francoeur said. "I'm not sitting here holding any bitter feelings — at least trying not to. I know fans were surprised at some of my comments. But at the same time, for so long, I've kept my mouth shut. I was upset. But at the same time, I'm appreciative of the fact that after three days [general manager] Frank [Wren] and Bobby saw what I'd done and want me back in the lineup."

The Braves sent Francoeur to Mississippi with the idea he'd be there for a minimum of 10 days, but with the rash of injuries over the weekend came an opportunity to call him back up. More importantly, Wren said, was what he's been doing at the plate.

"It had everything to do with the four hits he had [Sunday] and seven hits he had in three days and starting to relax," said Wren, who said the decision was made Monday morning after a phone call with minor- league coaches. "When we felt like he was comfortable swinging the bat and looking like his old self, we wanted to bring him back."

The injuries cleared a roster spot for him. A player can return within 10 days from the minor leagues if he's replacing a player on the disabled list. The Braves disabled three players following Sunday's game: pitchers Jeff Bennett (shoulder) and Manny Acosta (hamstring) and utlity man Omar Infante (hamstring).

"I think when he comes back and he rakes and he becomes the player that he is, he's going to look at these three days that he took and he's going to realize it was for the better, because he cleared his head and he got away," said catcher Brian McCann, Francoeur's closest friend on the team. "I think it was the best thing."

— Staff writer David O'Brien contributed information to this report from Los Angeles.