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Jeff Francoeur Compares Self To John Smoltz and Chipper Jones

Maybe I'm just over-sensitive. Maybe I should have just never read the typical "player is happy to join team" story.

Look, Francoeur isn't a good baseball player. We've been all over that and many of you are sick of talking about it. But this rant is only partially about that. We're still getting the "he's going to lead" garbage? I know Dayton has to say something about the signing. But lauding his abilities as a player would make as much sense. It's terrifying that Moore is not only bad an evaluating baseball players, he's bad at identifying people more generally.

I've asked it jokily and now I'll ask it seriously: what exactly is he going to teach? His career has been an abject failure. He, without qualification, has not lived up to expectations. He has not been a winner. He has not handled failure well. He has not handled benchings well. What has he done well? If anything, he's pretty clearly a bad example for young players. His example says precisely this, "live off the hype as long as you can, never change, and wait for an old scout to sign you years later."

And this... this... is just insulting.

"When I was 21 years old, I had mentors like John Smoltz and Chipper Jones, guys that showed me how to do it," said Francoeur, who understands the expectations that come with being a big-time prospect. "Here, you’ve got a lot of 21- or 22-year-old guys who are ready to come up and be stars for years. Hopefully I can help them out."

 

Yea, John Smoltz and Chipper Jones. Just like you, Jeff.