At one point last year, Jeff Francoeur thought about stepping back from Braves broadcasts to spend more time with his family. The timing did not feel right back then. But as this year progressed, as the calendar turned to April and then to May, Francoeur continued confronting the same reality.
He could not call 100-plus Braves games while also being the father he wanted to be for his kids.
So in August, he met with Jeff Genthner, Bally Sports South/Southeast’s senior vice president and general manager, and Derek Schiller, the Braves’ president and CEO. He informed them that he would be scaling back to spend more time with family.
“It wasn’t an easy conversation because they’ve been so good to me and I love it here,” Francoeur told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution over the phone. “But at the same time, it’s like, ‘Something is gonna suffer.’
“As my dad always taught me, it sure as hell ain’t going to be my family.”
For the last six years, Francoeur has spent his nights and weekends at the ballpark. He has missed sports games and certain holidays. While on the road, he was away from his kids. And when at home, he began to rarely see them.
“It’s just constant,” Francoeur said. “You’re back at it, almost to a certain extent, like when you played. I just can’t give that anymore right now.”
Francoeur, who turns 40 in January, expects to call around 30 Braves games in 2024. He’ll still be an analyst for TBS, and will work select Tuesday night contests and postseason games. In total, he believes he’ll call around 50 to 60 games next year.
Bally Sports South/Southeast added C.J. Nitkowski, who had been the lead analyst on Rangers broadcasts, to fill Francoeur’s role. Nitkowski and his family have lived in Alpharetta for the last 18 years.
And now, Francoeur will be able to live the life he wants.
Francoeur and his wife, Catie, have four kids: 10-year-old Emmy, 9-year-old Brayden, 5-year-old Ellie and 3-year-old Camden. The three oldest are in school, which complicated Jeff’s situation. “It just became harder,” he said.
Five years ago, he could spend all day with his kids before heading to the ballpark. But now they are older. Their schedules conflicted with his.
Francoeur’s days often looked like this: At 7:30 a.m., drop off the kids. At 3:30 p.m., pick them up from the carpool line. See them for 20 minutes when driving home, then leave for Truist Park.
“It just got to the point where I’m like, ‘Dude, this is not fun,’” Francoeur said. “I know people could say, ‘Well, you’re living at home.’ For me, that’s beside the point.”
Francoeur wants to see his kids. He wants to spend time with them. He wants to coach their teams. He wants to go to their games. He doesn’t want to miss important moments or milestones. He wants to take his kids to high school football games in the fall.
While working Braves games at points over the last year, Francoeur found himself watching his kids’ games on GameChanger – the app that allows youth sports teams to stream their contests. He was also texting his wife about how everything was going.
“It just became more apparent as I was going on like, ‘Man, what am I doing?’” Francoeur said.
At his meeting with Genthner and Schiller, Francoeur expressed openness to the possibility of assuming a larger role again in the future. “When the kids are gone, if I want to do (that amount of games) again, I can do it,” he said.
But for now, he’s stepping back.
He seems comfortable with his decision, and excited for his future.
In the spring, Ellie played tee-ball softball for the first time. Francoeur helped coach, but work always loomed. On a Saturday, he would eventually need to head home in the afternoon, shower and head to Truist Park.
This is the perfect example of how his job – as much as he loved it – got in the way of what he really wanted.
Francoeur estimates he called 108 games in 2022 and 104 in 2023.
“If I just do those many games man, it’s impossible,” he said.
Impossible to be the type of father he wants to be for them.
“Especially the next 10, 12 years with them and coaching and doing all that, I don’t want to miss that stuff, man,” Francoeur said. “My dad never missed that stuff for me. I sure as heck don’t want to do that with mine.”
