Earlier this week, in a report for MLB.com, Marty Noble said, “The Mets believe Jeff Francoeur will look sharp in their 2010 uni, so much so that they are inclined to approach him about signing him to a three-year contract.”
However, in a post to NBCSports.com, our old friend D.J. Short asks, “Is Francoeur worthy of a long-term 
deal?”
…i think noble is suggesting a deal that would cover francoeur’s last two years of arbitration, of which he is technically already under contract, as well as what could be his first year of free agency… it’s not a bad move, in that it would probably be, i’m guessing, $15 million over three years, which is probably what he’d end up making in two years of arbitration anyway… so, it’s a decent bet on all sides, if this happens…
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I like it, forget his OBP. In the 6th or 7th hole as an RBI man/run producer, he would be great.
He is EXACTLY what this team needs, and what we as a fan base have been dying to get. A Young, energetic, gritty player. He also speaks to the media and plays all out. We could do worse in RF for the next few years.
you beat me too it, if he hits 6th next year with wright, beltran and hopefully holliday infront of him he will have tons of RBI chances and i think he will be that run producer we hope for.
And also, i agree, i hate people that just judge a player strictly on stats…if francoeur is on the mets for 07 and 08 id bet they dont get pushed around in september and collapse…
Mets need more players like him, which is why holliday needs to be in LF, hes an aggressive tough player as well, and u can never have to many of those, not to mention holliday is a .300 hitter who will hit 30 120..
“And also, i agree, i hate people that just judge a player strictly on stats…if francoeur is on the mets for 07 and 08 id bet they dont get pushed around in september and collapse…”
You do realize that Francoeur was one of the worst hitters in baseball last year?!?!? He had the 6th lowest OPS in the majors – worse than Yuni Betancourt and Kurt Suzuki. He was one of the easiest outs in the game period.
The Mets have no business giving Frenchy a long-term deal because his track record is horrible. He’s one of the worst hitting RF in baseball since his sophomore season. He’s had a nice stretch with the Mets but to think that 65 games overrules 3.5 seasons is truly stupidity at its best.
We all know that Rey Ordonez was one of the worst hitters to ever play the game. Let’s compare his last season with the Mets to Frenchy:
Ordonez in 02: .254/.292/.324
Frenchy in 09 (Braves) .250/.282/.352
Frenchy 08: .239/.294/.359
These lines are pathetic from a no hit shortstop and if the Mets want to gamble on those horrible numbers for their right fielder, then maybe I’m cheering for the wrong team.
I think the poster above was trying to make the point that F-core has this influence over the clubhouse and maybe he could have inspiried the guys not to put so much pressure on themselves and in the same way take pressure off of Wright during those “collapses”
I agree totally. A few points:
1. Some people are motivated by a kick in the ass; others by a kiss on the top of the head. Jeff is the latter, (Murphy, I think, is the former, fwiw). What he was getting in Atlanta was “Why aren’t you Ted Williams!?? SI had you on the cover and said you were!!” Here in NY, we would be thrilled with .290/20hr/90RBI, ESPECIALLY in the six hole where he will hopefully either drive in the 3-4-5, AND see a lot more good pitches with more men on base. The contract is just good positive reinforcement.
2. I wonder if the same people who say we should not sign Frenchy are the same folks who thought it was a good idea TO sign Ollie.
And don’t give up on Murph either. He’s a kid who could come back to kick OUR butts if we dump him.
Is a 3 year contract a “long term deal”, especially for a 25 year old player?
Come on.
I wouldn’t give him a 3 year deal just yet. I’d like to see what he can do for a full year next year. And also the Mets have a Huge Hole in LF where i hope the answer is Holliday.
Then if they have a good year next season i’d be all for giving him an extension for 3 years. If he’s not good you have F-Mart waiting. No need to lock him up for 3 years prematurely.
While I don’t think Francour is a good player and think the Mets lucked into a nice 2nd half run out of him, that is not my real issue with this report.
Why would you sign a player to a 3 year contract that you control for 2 years anyway? It’s not as though Frenchy is a superstar player that the team should be trying to lock up through a couple of post free agency seasons. He is at best an average player. In general, you try not to lock yourself into these type of players long term. This is like giving Castillo that 3 year deal, or Franco the two, it make no sense.
Long term commitments are not for run of the mill players with big glaring flaws in their games. Why does Omar do this continuously?
I agree. We have seen a very small sample of Francoeur, so I’d be real careful about locking up a guy we don’t have to, especially with his track record.
He’s been better than I imagined he’d be, but I can’t be convinced based on 65 games. He has been absolutely putrid at times in his career.
So true. This is a stupid idea to “lock up” Frenchy. You lock up superstarts in arbitration not borderline players who could tank next year. Not saying he will but, if he does they can simply cut bait with him after the year instead of having another bad contract.
The risk is simply not worth the reward.
I wouldn’t worry about the 3 years presuming we don’t give a limited trade or no trade clause. If you sign him a fair deal, then he’s infinitely marketable when you don’t need him any longer
This is the type of deal a team gets stuck with. WHEN he puts up 300 ABs like he had in ATL this season, and his history shows he will, we will all want the team to move him. With a 3 year deal. they won’t be able too.
You may like Frenchy and the cut of his jib and all that, but these are not the type of players you lock in. And if you don’t, YOU STILL CONTROL HIM FOR 2 YEARS!!! This makes no sense.
Are you trying to impersonate me? You could have at least called yourself “Younger Backstop” :P
Maybe because you dont have to go through the arbitration process, and as a result can better forcast your expenditures on payroll moving forward?
If the deal is 3/15 and we want to move him at some point, I’m sure the Mets would be able to swing that. Its not a ridiculous contract and by the time it expires, he will be 28 and entering his prime.
Im pretty sure the reason theyd lock him up is because, i may be wrong, but im pretty sure they would lock him up at a base salary and erase the arbitration years, where as if he plays like he did his first 2 years in atlanta, next season, the arbitration would be pretty high, so therefore they wouldnt risk having to pay him more then they would if they signed him to a deal, and as i said, i may be well off, but that makes sense.
I guess it makes sense if you want Francour manning right field for the next 3 years, think he will be worth more the $15 million over that time and you would pay more than $15 million if you had to do so (so you would view the $15 million as a “good deal”).
I don’t. I don’t think he’s a particularly good player and don’t want to be locked into him longer the I have to be.
Looking at Fangraphs, Frenchy was worth $10 million in his rookie year and $15 million in 2007. In 2007, most of his production was due to his strong fielding stats; however his defense has moved to negative value over the last two seasons. Over the last two years, he was worth negative $$ to the team. The Mets want to give him a multiple year deal?!?!?
http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playerid=4792&position=OF
not good enough a player to lock into him for 3 years. Let him go to arb, and see what ahppens next year. If he really does look like a keeper, worry about extending him then.
Just as good a chance they want to be rid of him after next season. Why limit the options? Are they really that sure he will have a huge break out year and it will cost more to keep him after that? They still just have to do arb again next year, so only year 3 is a real risk.
Who knows. Maybe they lock him up, and he becomes a late stud like Werth.
I like franceour and hope hes back next year in RF (with holliday in LF) but no need to “lock him up” if he comes out and has a good year next year batting in the 6 hole maybe we can start talking extension. Im tired of this team just giving money away, not saying he doesnt deserve 5 mill a season but make him earn it.
Exactly. Even if you like Francoeur, there’s no need to lock him up.
Not a necessary move but I wouldn’t mind it if the contract is reasonable…which at $15mil/3years sounds like it would be.
I love Frenchy’s attitude and his hustle. It seems that he takes a lot of the pressure and leadership responsibility off of Wright’s shoulders which could be huge.
This guy was made to play in this town. If he can hit like he did in his first two years in Atlanta.
I find it most curious that you are praising a potential move that legitimizes most your claim that the Mets front office should be replaced.
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