Francoeur is "country strong"

[CadensDad]

Francoeur has 2 full seasons under his belt with the following slugging percentages:

.449
.444

That right there gets a big "MEH" from me.

A 24 year old player who has improved in nearly every category gets a "meh", thats good news for me, means I can get him later in drafts since he is only a "meh"

[KronJon]

Francoeur has 2 full seasons under his belt with the following slugging percentages:

.449
.444

That right there gets a big "MEH" from me.

A 24 year old player who has improved in nearly every category gets a "meh", thats good news for me, means I can get him later in drafts since he is only a "meh"

Sorry to burst your bubble but Francoeur has NOT improved in every category... notice that .444 is less than .449. His slugging has GONE DOWN EVERY YEAR HE HAS PLAYED.

A reminder:
.549 (2005)
.449 (2006)
.444 (2007)

A sub-.450 slugging from an OF who doesn't steal bases is a "meh". Another negative IMO is his misleading 100+ RBI totals for each of the last two seasons. A quick look at how he achieved such high RBI totals with such a mediocre slugging percentage and you find that he has been MUCH better with RISP. I personally don't want to bank on someone consistantly hitting like a monster with RISP and hitting like a chump with the bases empty. At some point that trend will die and so will his RBI totals unless he brings that SLG% up. To his credit though he did greatly increase his walk total last year which is promising. Don't get me wrong, I will draft the guy if he falls to the right spot, and this news of him gaining muscle is a good sign. He is a hard worker and has great potential to improve. But so far the stats just aren't up to par with the hype, IMO.

[Inukchuk]

Wow, most players have a pretty consistent range of projections from the cafe as a whole, but Frenchie's one of the few that I see a wide range of opinions. I myself am projecting a big year from him (if for no other reason than the fact that he's only 24 and has plenty of room to improve), but it will be interesting to see what happens this year...

[Yoda]

I always thought he was a bit overrated. He seems solid and can put together a good season but I'm not one of those who believe he will breakout in 08.

[Snakes Gould]

i dont get the people who think hes going to "breakout" but at the same time i dont see how the people are going to think he busts. i think hes going to put up a repectable avg .280-.300 with 20-30 hr with a low OBP.

i just dont see him going crazy and hitting 38 hrs nor do i see him hitting .260 with 19 hr or something like that.

[CadensDad]

Francoeur has 2 full seasons under his belt with the following slugging percentages:

.449
.444

That right there gets a big "MEH" from me.

A 24 year old player who has improved in nearly every category gets a "meh", thats good news for me, means I can get him later in drafts since he is only a "meh"

Sorry to burst your bubble but Francoeur has NOT improved in every category... notice that .444 is less than .449. His slugging has GONE DOWN EVERY YEAR HE HAS PLAYED.

A reminder:
.549 (2005)
.449 (2006)
.444 (2007)

A sub-.450 slugging from an OF who doesn't steal bases is a "meh". Another negative IMO is his misleading 100+ RBI totals for each of the last two seasons. A quick look at how he achieved such high RBI totals with such a mediocre slugging percentage and you find that he has been MUCH better with RISP. I personally don't want to bank on someone consistantly hitting like a monster with RISP and hitting like a chump with the bases empty. At some point that trend will die and so will his RBI totals unless he brings that SLG% up. To his credit though he did greatly increase his walk total last year which is promising. Don't get me wrong, I will draft the guy if he falls to the right spot, and this news of him gaining muscle is a good sign. He is a hard worker and has great potential to improve. But so far the stats just aren't up to par with the hype, IMO.

Notice I said in "nearly" every category. I know he didnt improve in slugging but did in most every other category

[jnormy]

I think much of the Frenchy hype has died down since his days at "The Natural" on the cover of SI. Most of the rankings and ADPs I've seen are pretty consistent with where he should be, IMO... somewhere around the third tier of OFs, anywhere from the 7th to the 10th round. Most folks know what they're gonna get with Francoeur from a fantasy standpoint, and if he does bump up his numbers either due to experience or newfound muscles, it's a nice bonus.

His value as a "real" player, I think, will always be a step up from his fantasy value because of his defense, laser throwing arm, decent speed for a corner OFer, consistently positive attitude, and work ethic. I just like the guy, and hope he does take it to the next level.

[KronJon]

Notice I said in "nearly" every category. I know he didnt improve in slugging but did in most every other category

Point taken, and I apologize for missing that word. However to my defense, in fantasy baseball and with an OF like Francoeur, slugging is the most important category for him to improve/not improve in.

[Ender]

He had a lto of HR from 2006 turn into 2B in 2007. Whether that is bad luck or a correction is just hard to say. The rest of his skillset has improved so I'd bet on an increase in HR this year myself.

[Boyakasha]

I don't have anything to add about Francoeur that hasn't been said, but I am bothered by Kotsay's misuse of the term "country strong." C'mon brah, everyone knows country strong is Adam Dunn or Jim Thome; big fatass farm boys that are naturally strong. You don't work out and become country strong.