Jeff Francouer, “Frenchy”, played around a lot (Braves from 2005 – 09)

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2005, Atlanta Braves, Gold Glove Award, Jeff Francoeur

Jeff Francouer,  known as”Frenchy”, has played around. Starting off with the Braves for a while (2005 to 2009) and then the Mets, Rangers, Royals, Giants, Padres, Phillies, Braves again and Marlins.

His career started off great in 2005, but the end wasn’t as good for Francouer.

On the day that his Sports Illustrated cover came out, Jeff Francoeur learned just how hard the major leagues could be.

It was Aug. 22, 2005, and as Francoeur and his Atlanta Braves got ready to play the Cubs in Chicago, the then-21-year-old outfielder was being billed to the world as “THE NATURAL,” the first baseball player to get that treatment from the magazine since Ken Griffey Jr.

And why not? Starting with his major league debut on July 7, Francoeur had played like the second coming of Roy Hobbs: a .370 batting average, 10 home runs in 34 games, a starring role on a first-place team. A precocious rookie displaying uncommon power at the plate and brilliant defense in rightfield, the Atlanta-area native seemed to have the majors all figured out.

That night at Wrigley Field, Francoeur received an abrupt course correction when he stepped in against flamethrowing Chicago righthander Carlos Zambrano.

“He was throwing 99 to 100 [mph], [and] he struck me out all three times,” Francoeur said. “And I’m like, okay, now I see what some of these guys can do.”

Still, Francoeur had good stats from 2005-09 and deserves to be a highly ranked player for the Braves.

During his more than four years in Atlanta, he hit .266 with 78 home runs and 359 RBI. He also had 653 hits, with 129 of those being doubles, and he scored 310 runs.

Defensively, he won the Gold Glove in 2007 and had 65 total outfield assists in more than four years.

Standard Batting

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI
2005	21	ATL	NL	70	257	41	77	14	45
2006	22	ATL	NL	162	651	83	169	29	103
2007	23	ATL	NL	162	642	84	188	19	105
2008	24	ATL	NL	155	599	70	143	11	71
2009	25	TOT	NL	157	593	72	166	15	76
2009	25	ATL	NL	82	304	32	76	5	35
2009	25	NYM	NL	75	289	40	90	10	41
2010	26	TOT	MLB	139	454	52	113	13	65
2010	26	NYM	NL	124	401	43	95	11	54
2010	26	TEX	AL	15	53	9	18	2	11
2011	27	KCR	AL	153	601	77	171	20	87
2012	28	KCR	AL	148	561	58	132	16	49
2013	29	TOT	MLB	81	245	20	50	3	17
2013	29	KCR	AL	59	183	19	38	3	13
2013	29	SFG	NL	22	62	1	12	0	4
2014	30	SDP	NL	10	24	2	2	0	1
2015	31	PHI	NL	118	326	34	84	13	45
2016	32	TOT	NL	125	307	33	78	7	34
2016	32	ATL	NL	99	257	29	64	7	33
2016	32	MIA	NL	26	50	4	14	0	1
12 Y	12 Y	12 Y	12 Y	1481	5260	626	1373	160	698
162	162	162	162	162	575	68	150	18	76
				G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI
ATL	ATL	ATL	ATL	730	2710	339	717	85	392
KCR	KCR	KCR	KCR	360	1345	154	341	39	149
NYM	NYM	NYM	NYM	199	690	83	185	21	95
SFG	SFG	SFG	SFG	22	62	1	12	0	4
PHI	PHI	PHI	PHI	118	326	34	84	13	45
TEX	TEX	TEX	TEX	15	53	9	18	2	11
SDP	SDP	SDP	SDP	10	24	2	2	0	1
MIA	MIA	MIA	MIA	26	50	4	14	0	1
NL (	NL (	NL (	NL (	1105	3862	463	1014	119	538
AL (	AL (	AL (	AL (	375	1398	163	359	41	160

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/22/2017.

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George Stallings makes a difference as manager (1913)

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1913, 1914, George Stallings

The Braves 1913 were stunningly horrible, except for one thing. They had a 69-82 record finishing 5th, 31 1/2 games behind. It was the first year for the new manager, George Stallings, and what a change he would make for the Braves.

In 1914, he would earn the title of “The Miracle Man”.

When Stallings took over in 1913, he was the teams eighth manager in seven seasons. No one had held the job for two years in a row since Fred Tenney in 1906-07.

The Braves had finished last in four consecutive seasons, averaging 104 losses and 55 1/2 games out of first.

He would improve things, in 1913, by three places and 20 1/2 games in standings. The fifth place finish was its highest in 11 years.

Managerial Stats Table

Rk	Year	Age	Tm	Lg	W	L	W-L%
1	1897	29	Philadelphia Phillies	NL	55	77	.417
2	1898	30	Philadelphia Phillies	NL	19	27	.413
3	1901	33	Detroit Tigers	AL	74	61	.548
4	1909	41	New York Highlanders	AL	74	77	.490
5	1910	42	New York Highlanders	AL	78	59	.569
6	1913	45	Boston Braves	NL	69	82	.457
7	1914	46	Boston Braves	NL	94	59	.614
8	1915	47	Boston Braves	NL	83	69	.546
9	1916	48	Boston Braves	NL	89	63	.586
10	1917	49	Boston Braves	NL	72	81	.471
11	1918	50	Boston Braves	NL	53	71	.427
12	1919	51	Boston Braves	NL	57	82	.410
13	1920	52	Boston Braves	NL	62	90	.408
			Philadelphia Phillies		74	104	.416
			Detroit Tigers		74	61	.548
			New York Highlanders		152	136	.528
			Boston Braves		579	597	.492
					879	898	.495

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/22/2017.

‘Slidin’ Billy Hamilton sets a record with 83 stolen bases (1896)

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1896, Billy Hamilton, Boston Beaneaters

1900 is generally considered the start of the modern era in baseball. So how do you evaluate players before then to players today? Not easily is the answer.

Billy Hamilton was a center fielder for the Boston Beaneaters (Braves) from 1896 to 1901. Billy was born in Newark, NJ on February 16, 1866.

As a pre-modern league player, it is easy to say he would be a star today. He set many base stealing records that stood until Lou Brock and Ricky Henderson came along and broke them.

Hamilton, a Hall of Famer, was known as “Slidin’ Billy”. Now this is amazing. He is the only player in history to have more lifetime runs scored than games played.

Although the rules changed, Hamilton held both career (937) and single season (115) stolen base records until Brock and Henderson broke them.

In his first year (he was 30 at the time) with Boston in 1896, he stole 83 bases. A record that still stands.

Fred Frankhouse is the only bright spot (1935)

Tags

1904, 1935, April 9, Babe Ruth, Boston Braves, Fred Frankhouse, Spitball

When you can win games on the worst team in the history of the Braves, that deserves a note. Not a footnote but a note.

Fred Frankhouse played for the Braves and the Bees from 1930-35 and 1939. He was a right handed pitcher born on April 9, 1904.

The 1935 Braves were flat out horrible. They lost a modern day record of 115 games. That was a record of .248, the worst in franchise history.

What about Frank? He managed to win 11 games and finish with a .423 record. Not bad all things considered. No other Braves pitcher won more than 8 games in 1935 and only one other, Bob Smith, managed to win more than five.

His specialty pitch was “the old roundhouse curve”, and he was often referred to as a “spitballer” during his career as a pitcher.  Frankhouse pitched in Babe Ruth’s final game that year.

Standard Pitching

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	W	L	W-L%	ERA	G
1927	23	STL	NL	5	1	.833	2.70	6
1928	24	STL	NL	3	2	.600	3.96	21
1929	25	STL	NL	7	2	.778	4.12	30
1930	26	TOT	NL	9	9	.500	5.87	35
1930	26	STL	NL	2	3	.400	7.32	8
1930	26	BSN	NL	7	6	.538	5.61	27
1931	27	BSN	NL	8	8	.500	4.03	26
1932	28	BSN	NL	4	6	.400	3.56	37
1933	29	BSN	NL	16	15	.516	3.16	43
1934	30	BSN	NL	17	9	.654	3.20	37
1935	31	BSN	NL	11	15	.423	4.76	40
1936	32	BRO	NL	13	10	.565	3.65	41
1937	33	BRO	NL	10	13	.435	4.27	33
1938	34	BRO	NL	3	5	.375	4.04	30
1939	35	BSN	NL	0	2	.000	2.61	23
13 Y	13 Y	13 Y	13 Y	106	97	.522	3.92	402
162	162	162	162	12	11	.522	3.92	44
BSN	BSN	BSN	BSN	63	61	.508	3.88	233
STL	STL	STL	STL	17	8	.680	4.05	65
BRO	BRO	BRO	BRO	26	28	.481	3.94	104

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 10/18/2017.

Freddie Freeman of Atlanta Braves calls Milwaukee Brewers’ Miller Park ‘bad-lit Little League field’ (April 29, 2017)

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2017, April 29, Atlanta Braves, Freddie Freeman, Little League

Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman looked forward to the 2017 series finale against Milwaukee on April 29. It was mostly because he was apparently tired of playing at the Brewers’ Miller Park.

Miller Park was completed in 2001 as a replacement for Milwaukee County Stadium. The park is located just southwest of the intersection of Interstate 94 and Miller Park Way. The title sponsor is the Miller Brewing Company. Miller’s contract with the stadium was for $40 million, and runs until 2020.

It is unique in that features North America’s only fan-shaped convertible roof, which can open and close in less than 10 minutes. Large panes of glass allow natural grass to grow, augmented with heat lamp structures wheeled out across the field during the off-season.

I remember the original domed stadium, the Astrodome, in Houston. They didn’t have a convertible roof and thought the grass would grow anyway. It didn’t, thus creating Astroturf.

Speaking before the Braves’ 11-3 win, Freeman was critical of the stadium.

“I think it’s a bad-lit Little League field,” Freeman said, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “I can’t see anything here.”

You have to love the honesty.

The Beaneaters and a season of lasts (1906)

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1906, Boston Beaneaters, Fred Tenney, Irv Young, Johnny Bates

1906 would be a year of lasts for the Beaneaters. With a 49-102 record, the Beaneaters would finish last. An astonishing 66 1/2 games behind the leader. They would also be last in hitting, pitching and fielding. This was also the last year they would be called the Beaneaters. It was Fred Tenney’s second season as manager and what a disaster he oversaw.

This was the first time the Braves had ever finished last. The team had a batting average of 226, a staff ERA of 3.14 and a composite fielding percentage of .947. And amazingly, for the second year in a row, four 20 game losers for pitchers.

Opening day was a highlight however. This is rare. Johnny Bates is a rookie outfielder. At his first at bat, he hits a homer. This is first time a rookie player had hit a home run in his first at bat.  In addition, Irv Young had a great outing pitching. He threw a one-hitter. The Beaneaters won, beating Brooklyn 2-0.

They should have stopped there. Embarrassment only followed for the next six months.

John Morrill takes Harry Wright’s place as manager (1882)

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1882, Boston Red Caps, Harry Wright, John Morrill

John Morrill – Boston manager 1882

1882 brought  the first time that the Boston Red Caps (now the Atlanta Braves) would change managers. Harry Wright was out. John Morrill was in. This would be the first of many managerial changes over the years.

As a player, he was known as “Honest John”.

The Red Caps improved. They moved up from sixth place the year before to tie for third. A fairly impressive 45-39 record.

Change. It is constant. It is baseball.

See More Here:

• John Morrill
• 1882

Fred Tenney gets a bonus for losing (1905)

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1905, Arthur Soden, Bonus, Boston Beaneaters, Fred Tenney, William Conant

How low can the Braves (then known as the Boston Beaneaters) go? Pretty low some years.

In 1905 Boston Beaneaters finished seventh with a record of 51-102. That’s right.

They were 54 and 1/2 behind the leader. It was Fred Tenney’s 1st year as manager. What a start that was. Spoiler alert. It would get worse next year.

The owners didn’t do Fred any favors. A veteran Beaneater, he knew what he was getting into.

This was Moneyball in reverse. The owners, Arthur Soden and William Conant were only interested in getting a profit out of the team. They literally told Tenney not to worry about losing. Seriously.

What kind of bonus did the offer him? More money if the team didn’t lose money.

So what did he do? He took them seriously. He even went to climbing into the stands to retrieve balls. He got into a fight with umpire Bill Klem. He accused Klem of keeping balls.

As a side note, Tenney tried to sign William Clarence Matthews, an African-American middle infielder from Harvard University, to a contract. Tenney later retracted his offer due to pressure from the players.

So … Tenney got his bonus and the Braves got worse.

Be careful what you ask for!

Fred Tenney

 

58-80 isn’t a good enough record in anybody’s world (1903)

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1903, Al Buckenberger, American League, Boston Beaneaters, Boston Pilgrams, Jimmy Collins

1903 was a disastrous year for the Beaneaters. It was Al Buckenberger’s second year as manager. They ended the season in sixth place with a 58-80 record. Ouch!

This would be the first year for what would be known as the modern World Series. A Boston team did win it. It was managed by the former Beaneaters third-base great Jimmy Collins.

Only once before in the Braves short history at this point did the franchise finish with a worse percentage or further from first than they did in 1903. That was way back in 1885 when they ended up with a 46-66 record. Under John Morrill’s leadership they were 41 games behind Chicago.

The Boston team that won the World Series was the Boston Pilgrims, an American League team with former Beaneaters Chick Stahl and Bill Dinneen. They beat Pittsburgh in a best of nine match-up.

As a side note, for years many sources have listed “Pilgrims” as the early Boston AL team’s official nickname, but researcher Bill Nowlin has demonstrated that the name was barely used, if at all, during the team’s early years. The origin of the nickname appears to be a poem entitled “The Pilgrims At Home” written by Edwin Fitzwilliam that was sung at the 1907 home opener (“Rory O’More” melody). This nickname was commonly used during that season, perhaps because the team had a new manager and several rookie players. John I. Taylor had said in December 1907 that the Pilgrims “sounded too much like homeless wanderers.” And so … we now know them as the Boston Red Sox.

The Beaneaters win the pennant with a 93-39 record (1897)

Tags

1897, Billy Hamilton, Boston Beaneaters, Frank Selee, Hugh Duffy, Jimmy Collins, Kid Nichols, September 30

Frank Selee is in his 8th season in 1897. The Beaneaters (now known as the Atlanta Braves) radically improve from a fourth place finish in 1896 to first in 1897 with a 93-39 record.

It wasn’t all a bed of roses though. It was, in fact, very tough. Boston didn’t actually clinch the pennant until September 30. They finished just 2 games ahead of Baltimore. They were true adversaries that year.

The Beaneaters had four players headed for the Hall of Fame.

Contrast that with Baltimore. They had won the pennant the previous three years and would end up with five in the Hall of Fame.

Boston had Jimmy Collins, the best third baseman of the day, the amazing pitcher Kid Nichols along with outfielders Hugh Duffy and “slidin’ Billy” Hamilton.

Is King Kelly really the Captain? (1887)

Tags

1887, Boston Beaneaters, John Morrill, King Kelly

So who is in charge of the 1887 Beaneaters (now known as the Atlanta Braves)?

John Morrill had the title of manager. He had the year before as well. It was his 6th year with the title.

King Kelly, newly arrived from Chicago with a $10,000 price tag, was named Captain. Somehow he thought he was in charge. What did the players think? They were confused.

Late in the season, the Triumvers, as the owners were known, recognized they had a problem and gave the title of Captain back to Morrill. A case of “too little, too late”.

The Beaneaters ended the season with a 61-60 record, good enough for fifth place.

Mike “King” Kelly

The Players League decimates the Beaneaters (1890)

Tags

1890, Charles Redbourn, Dan Brouthers, Frank Selee, King Kelly, Players League

1890 was the year of the Player League. At the time, baseball had a thing known as the reserve clause and the $2,000 salary cap. To protest that, the players started the National Brotherhood of Base Ball Players.

It had a big impact on the Beaneaters (now known as the Atlanta Braves) in that “King” Kelly left the Beaneaters to manage and captain the rival Boston entry in the Players League.

That opened the floodgates. Nine other Beaneaters signed with new league. That included Dan Brouthers who won the batting title the year before. Charles “Old Hoss” Redbourn also left. While near the end of his career, he had a 20 victory season the year before.

Imagine the loss if the 1993 Braves would have lost Tom Glavine, Terry Pendleton, David Justice and seven other players just prior to the season start. That is what the 1890 Beaneaters would face.

The had an 1890 record of 76-57, finishing 5th, 12 games behind. Frank Selee was in his first season. Welcome to the big leagues!