Top prospect Wander Franco is headed to the big leagues and will be called from the minors by the Tampa Bay Rays, the team announced Sunday.
According to ESPN's Kelly McDaniel, 20-year-old Franco is a switch-hitting infielder who ranked as the No. 1 prospect in baseball. In 39 games for Triple-A Durham, Franco hit .315/.367/.586 with seven home runs and 35 RBIs.
He will join the Rays for their series against the Boston Red Sox starting Tuesday in Tampa, Florida.
The Rays are in the middle of a six-game losing streak, their longest since an eight-game skid in May 2018, including four walk-off losses in their last five games, the Mariners in the last two of those 10-innings. loss is included.
The Rays have only hit .222/.300/.361 in June, ranking 25th among the majors in Ops, so they'll be turning to Franco to provide some aggressive spark. Regarded as one of the best net hitting prospects in recent decades, Franco has a career minor league average of .332 with more walks than strikeouts. He has finished 10th in the OPS in Triple-A East despite being the youngest player in the league to leave Double-A.
Franco has primarily played shortstop at Durham, starting 28 games there, while also playing some third base and second base. Rookie Taylor Walls has been the primary shortstop for the Rays since he traded Willy Adames to the Milwaukee Brewers, but Walls has hit .237 with one home run in 26 games. Joey Wendle started at shortstop on Sunday, but his best position is third base, which should clear shortstop for Franco if Walls is the player sent off to open a roster spot for Franco.
“Due to his unique combination of pedigree, tools and performance, Franco has been the best prospect in baseball for nearly two years. He was and remains the best international prospect in his signing class for at least two years before signing That's what baseball has seen. In at least five years," McDaniel wrote in his Precision Top 100 rankings.
Franco would make his debut at the age of 20 years and 113 days, making him the second youngest player in Rays history after BJ Upton, who made his debut in 2004 at 19 years and 347 days.
The Rays finished first at the AL East from May 24 to June 18, but have recently suffered injuries. Staff ace Tyler Glasnow was injured last Monday and subsequently landed on the 60-day injured list, the ninth Ray pitcher to go on the 60-day IL.
Despite the injuries, the pitching staff has held its own, placing sixth among the majors with a 3.38 ERA. The Rays are only hitting .229, and have the second-worst strike rate among the majors. Franco's contact capability should be a welcome change to the lineup.
There may be more help along the way, as McDaniel ranked Ray's Farm system as one of the best among the big companies.
Infielder/outfielder Vidal Brujan has started the game for Durham in six different positions and hit .274/.363/.514, with nine home runs, although he has slipped of late. Center fielder Josh Lowe is hitting .313/.365/.619 with nine home runs.
McDaniels' Top 100 pitcher Luis Patino, number 21, has spent some time in the Majors this season and may be on the option of replacing Glasno in the rotation, though the Rays will monitor his innings carefully. He recalled reliever Drew Rasmussen, who was part of the Adams trade, and played 11 1/3 scoreless innings at Durham with 23 strikes and two walks.