The Yankees have released left-hander Jeff Francis, according to the team’s official transactions page. The veteran southpaw had been designated for assignment by the Bombers last week, with outfielder Zoilo Almonte taking his roster spot.
Francis has pitched for the Reds, A’s and Yankees this season, posting a combined 5.85 ERA with 15 strikeouts against three free passes in 20 innings. Francis hasn’t posted a sub-5.00 ERA since he fired 183 innings of 4.82 ERA ball with the 2011 Royals, though ERA estimators such as FIP, xFIP and SIERA have consistently been a bigger fan of his work than his ERA. He’s been plagued by a below-average strand rate for the past several seasons, and his homer-to-flyball ratio has been considerably above his career norm over the past three seasons as well.
Teams in need of rotation depth could give the former No. 9 overall draft pick a look, be it in the rotation or in the bullpen. With the exception of his small 2014 sample, Francis has done a nice job of holding left-handers in check in recent years.
The candle that burns twice as bright, burns half as long. Goodnight, sweet prince
Yankees still owe the A’s a player for him
Would it not make sense for the braves to snag him as Mike Minor insurance? Minor had been terribly. Maybe in a short stint Francis could provide some help.
If this is the end for Jeff Francis, I think it has been a good career. Not a great one, but definitely not one that should make anyone hang their head. He is probably still in the Rockies all-time rotation along with Ubaldo Jimenez, Aaron Cook, Jorge de la Rosa, and either Pedro Astacio or Jason Jennings.
That makes me kinda sad.
Dodgers need pitching