Wander Franco

Wander Samuel Franco (born March 1, 2001) is a Dominican professional baseball shortstop in the Tampa Bay Rays organization.

Wander Franco
Tampa Bay Rays – No. 5
Shortstop
Born: (2001-03-01) March 1, 2001
Bani, Dominican Republic
Bats: Switch Throws: Right

Career

Franco was ranked as one of the top international prospects in the 2017 international class![1] He signed with the Tampa Bay Rays on July 2, 2017.[2][3] Franco made his professional debut in 2018 with the Princeton Rays. In a game in July, he hit for the cycle.[4] In 2018, at only 17 years old, Franco was named the 2018 Appalachian League Player of the Year after hitting .374/.445/.636 with 11 home runs and 57 RBIs over 245 plate appearances for the Princeton Rays.[5][6]

Prior to the 2019 season, Franco was ranked as the fourth best prospect in baseball by Baseball America.[7] He began the season with the Bowling Green Hot Rods.[8][9] He was promoted to the Charlotte Stone Crabs on June 25.[10] Franco was named to the 2019 All-Star Futures Game.[11]

Prior to the 2020 season, Franco was ranked the #1 prospect in all of baseball. On September 22, 2020 the Rays added Franco to their Player pool of players who would be eligible to play in the Major League Baseball postseason.

Personal life

His brothers, both also named Wander, played in the Houston Astros and San Francisco Giants organizations. His father, Wander Sr. played minor league ball in the 1990s. His uncles, Erick Aybar[12] and Willy Aybar, played in Major League Baseball (MLB).[13]

References
  1. "2017 Prospect Watch". MLB.com. Archived from the original on July 13, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  2. Topkin, Marc (July 2, 2017). "Rays journal: Rays to sign top international prospect Wander Franco". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on February 15, 2019. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  3. Chastain, Bill (July 2, 2017). "Rays sign international prospect Wander Franco | Tampa Bay Rays". MLB.com. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  4. Rosenbaum, Mike (July 14, 2018). "Rays prospect Wander Franco hits for cycle". MLB.com. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  5. Topkin, Marc (March 5, 2019). "The wonder of Wander, who is on the Rays' fast track". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on August 15, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  6. Sanford, Adam (August 23, 2019). "Wander Franco named Appalachian League Player of the Year". DRays Bay. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  7. Cooper, J.J. (April 26, 2019). "Wander Franco Dominating The Midwest League, Already". Baseball America. Archived from the original on September 19, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  8. Romano, John (May 1, 2019). "With Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the majors, the countdown begins for the Rays' Wander Franco". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  9. Glasier, David S. (May 18, 2019). "Wander Franco's star rising with Hot Rods". The News-Herald. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  10. Kolakowski, Ryan (June 26, 2019). "Rays uber prospect Wander Franco shines in Stone Crabs debut". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on June 28, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  11. Callis, Jim (June 28, 2019). "Here are the 2019 Futures Game rosters". MLB.com. Archived from the original on July 8, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  12. Topkin, Marc (July 2, 2017). "Rays finalize deal with top prospect Wander Franco". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on June 7, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
  13. Passan, Jeff (June 11, 2019). "Passan: How Wander Franco became MLB's next can't-miss kid". ESPN. Archived from the original on September 9, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2019.
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