Nick

Franklin

The former top prospect will likely be a Triple-A player for the Bucs. Franklin, 27, has batted .205/.271/.341 in 511 major league plate appearances since his promising debut season with the Mariners back in 2013.

Franklin spent nearly all of this season in the minors. He’s a career .214/.285/.359 hitter over parts of six big league seasons.

The Mariners probably don’t want to risk putting too much pressure on their rookies after the recent spectacular failures of Jesus Montero and Dustin Ackley, but Franklin looks like their best option to hit leadoff right now. He already has a nice 5/7 K/BB ratio to go along with his .278 average in 36 at-bats.

Franklin singled in Endy Chavez in the bottom of the eighth to give the Mariners a brief 1-0 lead in what turned out to be a 6-1 loss. He’s now batting .300 in 50 at-bats, and the Mariners showed their faith in him by putting Dustin Ackley in left field in Triple-A tonight.

Nick Franklin has looked good since his call-up, so the Mariners are looking for other ways to get Ackley into the lineup when he returns. He could also potentially see some time at first base. Ackley is batting .429/.536/.607 with two homers over 13 games at Tacoma since being demoted last month.

Franklin was off to a torrid start this season with the Tacoma Rainiers, batting .324/.440/.472 with four home runs and seven stolen bases in 39 games. The talented 22-year-old can play shortstop and second base, and should carry immediate value in mixed fantasy leagues.

Franklin has hit .324/.440/.472 with four home runs and seven stolen bases in 39 games this season at the Triple-A level and is worth scooping up in standard mixed fantasy leagues. The Mariners wouldn’t promote the 22-year-old to sit on the bench. He should get regular playing time, whether that’s at second base or shortstop.

Franklin finished 1-for-4. It was the rookie’s first home run at Safeco Field and his fourth overall. The round-tripper, which came in the third inning, accounted for all of Seattle’s offense in a 6-3 setback. Franklin has offered everything Seattle could have hoped for and more, rendering Dustin Ackley an afterthought. Franklin is batting an impressive .277/.362/.494 through 83 at-bats.

He also collected three RBI in Friday’s game and he now has seven in his last three games. Franklin has hit safely in 10 of his last 11 games. He’s now batting .295 with four homers and 13 RBI over 88 at-bats.

Franklin reported to camp last year at 6-foot-1 and 180 pounds, so the Mariners wanted him to add some weight. We’d say 35 pounds is sufficient. The soon-to-be 22-year-old hit .287/.358/.430 with six homers and 16 steals across three levels in 2012 and could make his major league debut in 2013 with only Brendan Ryan blocking his path.