Walk-offranco


Maikel Franco kept the Phillies in first place Thursday night. Facing Marlins closer Kyle
Barraclough with two on, two out and the game tied in the last of the 9th, he reached the left field seats for his 18th and arguably, most important home run of the year.
Keep in mind, the Phils came into the 9th down by a run -- and already aware that the second place Braves had beaten the Mets. After Nick Williams tied things on an infielder grounder with the bases loaded, Franco sent what was left of the 26,000 spectators home happy.
After a slow start that followed two seasons of declining production -- amidst questions about his attitude and work habits -- things finally seemed to click for Franco the last six weeks. If the Phils are going to keep ahead of the Braves and the underachieving Nationals, Gabe Kapler is going to need this version of Maikel Franco.

(My images of Franco came from a July 2017 Phillies/Astros game at Citizens Bank Park.)

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