Jeff Francoeur delivers again as Phillies take one from Giants

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Standing at home plate waiting for a pitch was not a comfortable place for Jeff Francoeur over the last few seasons.

Certainly the numbers show as much — a .193 batting average with 68 strikeouts in 91 games — and bouncing from Kansas City to San Francisco to Fresno to El Paso and San Diego didn’t help much, either.

But in Philadelphia there was one person who had been waiting for years to get a chance to work with Francoeur and get his swing back in order. One guy said it over and over whenever Francoeur’s name was brought up …

“I can fix him,” Charlie Manuel said.

After Sunday’s 6-4 victory over the Giants in which Francoeur’s pinch-hit double in the seventh inning won it for the Phillies, it appears as if Manuel’s work with Francoeur has paid off (see Instant Replay).

Thanks to Francoeur’s two-out pinch double in the seventh, the Phillies (22-36) salvaged a game in the three-game series against the defending champs and snapped a three-game losing skid. Along with Francoeur’s clutch hit, rookie Maikel Franco went 2 for 4 with a double and a homer, Cody Asche had two hits and two big RBIs while Odubel Herrera hit a long homer.

Confidence has been the key.

“The one thing Charlie did for me was instill confidence back into me,” Francoeur said about his spring training work with the Phillies' ex manager. “He told me, ‘You can hit. You might not have the right approach or doing some things the right way, but you can hit.’

“Coming from a guy like Charlie, that’s nice to hear. When a guy like that, who was as good a manager as he was tells you those things, [shoot], you believe it.”

Francoeur, still just 31, appears to have resurrected his career with the Phillies in 2015. Though he’s hitting just .258, Francoeur is second on the team in RBIs (20) and is 5 for 9 with two doubles and five RBIs as a pinch hitter.

He’s also batting .357 with a pair of homers, three doubles and 11 RBIs in his last 16 games while going 12 for 41 (.293) against lefties this season. Saturday, Francoeur hit a grand slam off World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner before smashing the game-winning double off Giants’ lefty Javier Lopez on Sunday.

“I feel good going to the plate right now and at the end of 2013 and even part of last year, I didn’t feel like that,” Francoeur said, noting that Manuel made it a habit to seek him out when he was slumping to tell him that Manuel could “fix” him.

“The one thing I wanted to do was make sure I hit lefties. I said that was my No. 1 goal. Any time you get a spot start or get a chance to play against a righty, you try to take advantage of that too, but my top priority has been to hit lefties.”

Mixed in with the grand slams, doubles and RBIs off lefties is the typical big-time defense Francoeur has always been known for. He only has one outfield assist this year (because no one is dumb enough to run on him), but that one assist cut down a tying run at the plate in the bottom of the ninth to win a game for the Phillies.

Yes, it’s been a whirlwind of a season for Francoeur, who was once the next big thing when he was coming up with the Braves. Though he was on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a rookie, missed just 12 games in his first four full seasons, Francoeur has reveled in his role as mentor and savvy veteran for the Phillies.

In fact, the first thing manager Ryne Sandberg noticed about Francoeur was how young players were drawn to him.

“I was impressed with his makeup and his character and how other players would gravitate toward him in a positive way,” Sandberg said. “That was the first thing that stuck out.”

The second thing that stuck out was Francoeur’s energy and readiness for the big spot in a game. Of his 20 RBIs this season, 12 of them have either tied the game or given the Phillies the lead and eight of his RBIs have come with two outs.

He’s also hitting .300 with two outs and .316 with two outs and runners in scoring position. Sunday’s two-out, pinch-hit double came in a spot that Francoeur has excelled at all year.

“He’s hungry every day, he’s ready for the moment, and he’s prepared and has a lot of energy with the guys,” Sandberg said. “With that whole package and makeup, he likes the opportunity when he gets a chance to play in any role. With his energy and positive energy he does a lot of big things for us.”

Francoeur had to wonder if he’d ever get a chance to enjoy those moments after spending most of last season playing for the Padres’ Triple A club in El Paso and riding the bench for the Royals and Giants in 2013.

“I said it before that every time I get a chance to put a big league uniform on I go out there and grind it out and enjoy the moment because I know for as good as it is right now, it can get bad,” Francoeur said. “You enjoy each moment.

“What I went through last year and the year before helped prepare me for the role I’m in now. I don’t think a year-and-a-half ago I would have been as happy. Now, when I get a chance to go out there I’m happy for the opportunity.”

But the work with Manuel has turned things around for Francoeur and maybe even some of the young players he has mentored this season.

“I was lucky that when I came up I was taught how to play the game the right way and be a professional and be accountable good or bad,” Francoeur said. “I’m thankful for that. I think that has helped me stay in the game and get some opportunities and be able to help some of the younger guys.

“It’s great when some of the younger guys ask me about stuff. You enjoy being able to lend a hand.”

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