Philadelphia Phillies: Matt Stairs Priming Maikel Franco for Breakout Year
By Jason Burke
Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Maikel Franco was a hot name in fantasy baseball circles at this time last year with all of the home run power that he was putting on display. This season we could see the breakout we’ve been waiting for.
Last season in his first full year with the Philadelphia Phillies, Maikel Franco smashed 25 homers and drove in 88 for an offense that ranked last in baseball by a wide margin. Franco’s 88 RBI accounted for 14.4% of the team’s runs scored, but new hitting coach Matt Stairs thinks that there is plenty of room for improvement from Franco.
Stairs played 19 seasons in the big leagues and his pinch-hit home run in Game 4 of the 2008 NLCS ended up being a game-winner that helped the Phils get just a bit closer to their eventual World Series title. With his softball swing, Stairs made a living out of being a professional hitter, and now he is going to attempt to pass along some of his tips to the younger players on the Phillies, like Franco.
"“He’s capable of having a tremendous year and a breakout season.” -Matt Stairs per Matt Breen of Philly.com"
The main point of the Franco whisperer’s teachings has essentially been to relax and settle for what the pitcher is giving him. The article linked above mentions that the 24-year-old third baseman pulled 79.9% of his batted balls last season. Stairs wants him to hit the ball to all fields and be happy with a 374 foot homer to right-center instead of aiming to hit a tape measure job every time out.
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For all of the production that Franco put up last season, he still held a 94 wRC+, six percent below league average. It would appear that he had been putting added pressure upon himself, carrying a significant amount of the offensive production and all. Across the board Franco hit better on the road, whether you measure by average (.264 to .246), OBP (.331 to .283) home runs (15 to 10) walks (26 in 73 games to 14 in 79 games) or strikeouts (44 to 62). Matt Stairs may be on to something with this whole relax approach.
Additions to the lineup that may help him do just that. Michael Saunders and Howie Kendrick are slated to roam the outfield and could cede some time to Aaron Altherr if he can remain healthy. Tommy Joseph had one hell of a start to his career in 2016. If he can continue at close to that rate, he should provide another solid bat in the lineup.
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With Matt Stairs working with him and some added pieces in the lineup, Maikel Franco could be gearing up for a breakout season. He even thinks too, telling Matt Breen, “I think this will be the season that I break through. I’m working hard…This year will be much better.”