Francoeur left out of crowded outfield

Washington— Jeff Francoeur was out of the Braves’ lineup Saturday afternoon, largely by default.

With Matt Diaz and Garret Anderson both swinging hot bats, and Francoeur having a chilly week at the plate, Francoeur got the day off despite the Braves’ facing a left-hander, John Lannan.

The left-handed hitting Anderson, who went 2-for-4 on Saturday, has hit safely in 19 of his past 22 games, going 28-for-78 (.359) since June 8. He homered pinch-hitting for Francoeur on Thursday.

“We had to get ‘Andy’ in there,” manager Bobby Cox said. “He hits lefties just like he hits righties. Diaz is hitting the ball so good. Frenchy in the last couple weeks has hit about .280, but it’s hard to work this [with other outfielders so hot].”

Diaz has been scorching at the plate, with 11 hits in his past five games. He went 2-for-3 with a double Saturday to continue taking advantage of a stretch in which the Braves face five consecutive left-handed starters.

With all those left-handers in a row, Francoeur said he thought Anderson would get in there at some point.

“You can’t sit Andy for five days,” he said. “Matty is swinging the bat good lately, and Garret hasn’t played in three days, so he’s got to play. … A couple of guys on this team are hot right now, so you ride it out. It’s part of the deal.”

Francoeur went 0-for-4 on Friday night, including 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position. He is 4-for-25 (.160) with one RBI in his past seven games.

“The last two games haven’t been that great,” said Francoeur, who had one hard-hit ball to straightaway center caught on the warning track Friday, but teams are defending him up the middle instead of to pull, as he did last year.

“If I keep that approach I’ll be fine,” Francoeur said. “I’m not worried about that part. I’m not going to go up there trying to do something different because that’s when you get yourself in a rut.”

Norton decision looming

Greg Norton’s minor-league rehabilitation assignment in Class AAA Gwinnett is coming to a close, and the Braves have a decision to make, which team officials plan to discuss on Sunday.

Norton, who had an ankle injury, is hitting .321 (9-for-28) with a home run and eight RBIs in 10 games, but the Braves haven’t recalled him in part because of Nate McLouth’s hamstring injury. McLouth returned to the lineup Friday after missing five games. The Braves need Gregor Blanco to play center field in case McLouth can’t go.

“It’s hard for us right now because McLouth could go down; we’ve got to have a center fielder,” Cox said.

Norton had hit only .098 (4-for-41) with the Braves this season.