Philly Sports Jabronis
By Austin Laymance, Phillies.com
PHILADELPHIA — Maikel Franco is putting up some impressive numbers for Triple-A Lehigh Valley, but the Phillies say they have not decided if the corner infielder will be called up to the Majors once rosters expand Sept. 1.
“We haven’t made a final decision on it, but we’re still discussing it internally,” Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said Monday. “There are a lot of different factors. We still have time to make a decision on it.”
One of those factors is playing time.
Maikel Franco has been impressive late in the season at AAA. Photo credit – Philly.com
Franco, the organization’s No. 3 prospect, could help the Phillies offensively. He hit for the cycle on Saturday and is batting .313 in the second half after struggling at the plate early in the season. Over his last 10 games entering Monday, he had a .375 average with three home runs and seven RBIs.
But Franco, who turns 22 on Tuesday, likely would not play every day in the Majors. He’s blocked at first base by Ryan Howard and at third base by Cody Asche.
“The biggest thing for him is playing time, and making sure this is the right thing, the right atmosphere and the right time — not atmosphere as much as playing time,” Amaro said. “We’d like to assess some other things.”
