Julio Franco Gone.

[metirish]

] Mets part ways with Franco BY KEN DAVIDOFF ken.davidoff@newsday.com The Mets are expected to remove Julio Franco from their roster today to make room for Lastings Milledge, Newsday has learned. An announcement will be made before today's game. It's not clear whether Franco, who turns 48 next month, will retire, or whether he'll accept an unconditional release and try to find a job elsewhere. In his second season with the Mets, Franco has 10 hits, including one homer, in 50 at-bats, for a .200 batting average. He has recorded a .328 on-base percentage and an anemic .260 slugging percentage. He has essentially served as a player-coach, providing guidance for the Mets' younger players. But with the Mets' offense struggling -- hitting coach Rick Down was fired last night, and Rickey Henderson will join the coaching staff today -- the club apparently decided that it could no longer use a roster spot on Franco. The Mets signed Franco to a two-year, $2-million contract prior to the 2006 season.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Good!

[seawolf17]

Wow... I didn't think this would actually happen. Good luck to Julio, and thanks for the memories. That makes today's Dugout outdated immediately.

[nymr83]

its about time!

[Guest metsguyinmichigan]

It's about time, but at the same time it's kind of sad to see it happen. I'd love to have him around as a coach.

Is there a limit as to how many coaches you can have?

[Guest Edgy DC]

Julio has been dealing with a sore knee since the Yankee series. It may explain his sluggish effort to get to first the other week, and it may lead to a DL assignment.

There's a limit to the number of coaches you can have in the dugout.

Edited July 12, 2007 by Guest

[nymr83]

seawolf17 wrote: Wow... I didn't think this would actually happen. Good luck to Julio, and thanks for the memories. That makes today's Dugout outdated immediately.

thats pretty funny, Wilson from Home Improvement was the best.

[nymr83]

]Is there a limit as to how many coaches you can have?

theres a limit to how many can be in the dugout (what Keith Hernandez later claimed to be talking about with that woman who didn't belong there)

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

I like that the Mets are being so creative and decisive.

[bmfc1]

I'm with Edgy: my guess is that the Mets will DL Franco and reinstate him in September when the roster expands.

[Centerfield]

Good move. Like he did with Jorge Julio, Omar seems to know when to cut a non-productive player loose.

Omar Minaya. Good dumper of Julios.

[metirish]

bmfc1 wrote: I'm with Edgy: my guess is that the Mets will DL Franco and reinstate him in September when the roster expands.

You really think that,my guess is that by then he'll be long forgotten,either retired or in a different organization.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Centerfield wrote: Good move. Like he did with Jorge Julio, Omar seems to know when to cut a non-productive player loose. Omar Minaya. Good dumper of Julios.

Jorge Julio, though many wanted him dumped, was instead dealt for an anchor of the Mets' rotation.

[Benjamin Grimm]

True. Maybe Omar can trade Franco to Florida for Dontrelle.

Well, maybe not, but he can at least make the phone call.

[Centerfield]

If that doesn't work, he should call Isiah Thomas and turn Franco into a first-round draft pick.

[Frayed Knot]

Good move obviously - even as the amount of complaining about Franco compared his roster spot being the cause of Met problems was vastly overblown by many fans.

Guess the backup 1st baseman is now Green (even tho both LH) as first Milledge, then hopefully Alou & Chavez, might make his OF innings most scarce in the coming months.

This also keeps Malomar Jr around for a while, making the sitting half of the Duke/Shrek tandem more available for pnich-hitting.


And, for me personally, this removes the last remaining major leaguer who was ... oh never mind.

Edited July 12, 2007 by Guest

[bmfc1]

This means that those of us with Extra Innings watching the Mets via an out-of-town telecast, or watching the Mets on ESPN or FOX, will no longer have to hear the phrase "ageless wonder."

[seawolf17]

Centerfield wrote: If that doesn't work, he should call Isiah Thomas and turn Franco into a first-round draft pick.

The sad thing is that Isiah would actually make that move.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Frayed Knot wrote: And, for me personally, this removes the last remaining major leaguer who was ... oh never mind.

Yeah, me too, I think. Let me check...

Nope, Roger Clemens (August 4, 1962) is still older than me.

But he is the last Met to have been born before me. Unless, of course, they reactivate Rickey (December 25, 1958) in September.

[Benjamin Grimm]

[Benjamin Grimm]

It's on Mets.com, so I guess it's official:

="Marty Noble"] Mets designate Franco for assignment 07/12/2007 3:09 PM ET By Marty Noble / MLB.com NEW YORK -- For weeks, Julio Franco had spoken privately of the need to find work elsewhere and the need to get enough at-bats to allow him to continue his career and reach his objective of playing at age 50. He was convinced remaining in what he considered a role more limited that he had anticipated would undermine his chances. He planned to ask for his release. The Mets beat him to the punch, though; they designated him for assignment on Thursday as part of the midseason roster restructuring. Some 5 1/2 weeks short of his 49th birthday, Franco now is a former Met. If no other club trades for him or claims him off waivers -- and the Mets don't reverse the process, which is quite unlikely -- he will become a free agent in 10 days and begin looking for a place where he will be likely to be given more opportunity to swing for 50. Franco was pleased Thursday afternoon, but a little off balance. "I thought I would surprise them," he said by telephone, "But they surprised me. It's what I need to do, so that part is good for me." Franco played sparingly in his 1 1/2 seasons with the Mets, starting seven games of the Mets' 87 games this season -- four at first base, two at third and one as the DH -- and batted .130 in 23 at-bats. His work as a pinch-hitter was more effective, seven hits in 26 at-bats, but all were singles. He played in 95 games last season, starting 25, mostly at first base. He batted .273 with 26 RBIs in 165 at-bats and was disappointed by the number of opportunities. Despite the disappointment, he considered seeking a contract extension during Spring Training. He never made the request, and when he found his playing time unsatisfactory, he reversed this thinking and weighed leaving. Now he is gone, creating more pinch-hit opportunities for Ramon Castro, who will be freed of the No. 2 catching restriction by the presence of Sandy Alomar Jr. The Mets wanted the veteran catcher and son of their third base coach because of his catching skills and leadership. Castro's hitting played no small role in this set of decisions. He has driven in 17 runs in 19 starts and has 11 hits -- six for extra bases -- six runs and six RBIs in the last eight games in which he had batted.

[G-Fafif]

Yancy Street Gang wrote: ="Frayed Knot"]And, for me personally, this removes the last remaining major leaguer who was ... oh never mind. Yeah, me too, I think. Let me check... Nope, Roger Clemens (August 4, 1962) is still older than me. But he is the last Met to have been born before me. Unless, of course, they reactivate Rickey (December 25, 1958) in September.

The continuing careers of Clemens and Jamie Moyer are all that stand between me and finally growing up.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Jamie Moyer, November 18, 1962, is also older than I am.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Intereesting that he's been talking off the record about his role not affording him enough PT to stay sharp, as I called that right from the beginning.

Announcers (Darling, in particular) kept saying all along that he's "one of the best ever at coming off the bench." But implying that he's been a killer pinch-hitter isn't really paying attention to what he actually had been doing during his rennaissance in Atlanta, where he was actually a part-time starter, relieving a string of lefthanded firstbasemen of varying degrees of medicrity of the challenge of facing lefthanded pitchers. He was getting enough work for himself.

His career pinch-hitting line --- .279 / .367 / .371 // .738 --- is actually inferor to his total line of .299 / .365 / .419 // .784.

[Guest cleonjones11]

More family time for Franco..he certainly wasn't doing much as a Met

[metirish]

cleonjones11 wrote: More family time for Franco..he certainly wasn't doing much as a Met

By that standard a few guys should get cut.

[DocTee]

While running today, I tuned in to KNBR, the Bay Area sports station. They were talking about the Giants, and how they might change gears in the second half, letting the kids play rather than some vets. One schlub (couldn't get his name through my own huffing and puffing) suggested that Rich Aurilia and Matt Morris would be moved--and mentioned the Mets as a possibility, since:

1. Aurilia is from Brooklyn
2. Aurilia bats RH and can spell Delgado at first and Wright at 3rd (not to mention the other two infield positions) just as Julio did
3. Morris has NY roots and is supposably unhappy with the Bay Area

The bait: Lastings Milledge, since the Giants need a "surly LF to replace Bonds" and he is now being "auditioned in NY for the upcoming trade deadline".

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

The end of Julio Franco's major league career will force me to face the grim reality that I am now too old to play baseball. Clemens and Moyer were both still in tee ball when I made my Little League career.

Maybe the White Sox will give Minnie Minosa one last shot.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Julio Franco, Atlanta Brave.

[Guest iramets]

Same as it ever was.