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The day that Jayson Werth signed along the dotted line on his $126 million contract had to be one of the best days of Ben Francisco’s life. See, Jayson’s departure gave Francisco a chance of living the dream and starting for the Philadelphia Phillies.
After spending all of their Christmas money on Cliff Lee, the Phillies placed the job of right fielder in the lap of Ben Francisco. Entering Spring Training, right field was Francisco’s job to lose. With his hopes and dreams within arm’s reach, Francisco won the job over John Mayberry with an excellent spring, hitting .361 with 5 HR, 14 RBI, and an OPS of 1.106.
Francisco parlayed his spring success into an equally impressive first week of the season. He hit .357 with 2 HR and 6 RBIs through his first seven games and was even robbed of a couple homers during that span. Ben was hitting for average and power and beginning to open some eyes.
But it didn’t last.
Francisco continually declined from that very point and his fortune has taken a complete U-turn ever since. His average dropped to .214 by May 24th and by July he was back to riding the bench. Despite his three-run homer in the NLDS, the Phillies decided this week that Francisco wasn't even worth arbitration, so they sent him to Toronto...for a minor leaguer.
Oh how the mighty have fallen.
But don’t feel too bad for Benny Fresh. He still gets to play major league baseball and he has made over $3 million in his major league career. And, oh yeah, at least he has a hot wife.
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