Jeff Francoeur, seven others sign minor league deals with Philadelphia Phillies

Jeff Francoeur and seven other players with prior MLB experience have signed minor league contracts with the Philadelphia Phillies. The team announced the deals Thursday morning.

Francoeur, 30, was once a 1st Round pick and top prospect with the Atlanta Braves. The outfielder made his debut with the Braves in 2002 – hitting .300/.336/.549 in 274 plate appearances – and figured to be a cornerstone of the Braves lineup for years to come. By 2008 he was struggling at the plate and then following a slow start to 2009 the team decided to trade him. Francoeur would spend time with the New York Mets, Texas Rangers, Kansas City Royals, San Francisco Giants, and Cleveland Indians before landing with the San Diego Padres last season.

Seeing time in both the outfield and on the mound, Francoeur had a solid season at Triple-A. He hit .289/.320/.450 in 487 PA and made eight appearances out of the bullpen, allowing just three earned runs in 7.1 IP while striking out five and walking four. He appeared in only 10 games in the major leagues. In 28 PA he managed just a pair of singles, hitting .083/.179/.083.

The remaining seven players signed by Philadelphia includes Andres Blanco, Brian Bogusevic, Russ Canzler, Chase d’Arnaud, John Hester, Darin Mastroianni, and Xavier Paul. Blanco spent time with Philadelphia in 2014, batting .277/.306/.447 in 53 PA while seeing time at second base, shortstop, and third. Only Mastroianni saw as many as 44 PA this past season among the remaining names, hitting .116/.136/.186 with the Minnesota Twins and Toronto Blue Jays. Bogusevic also has some pitching history, drafted for his arm before being converted into an outfielder for his bat.