Nick Franklin at the Top of Shortstop Prospects List

Nick Franklin just hit his first home run of the season in the Seattle Mariners vs. San Francisco Giants spring training game. It’s his first time attending spring baseball camp with the Mariners, and he’s been showing a lot of promise. He’s gained 15 pounds, and in his first season playing Class A Clinton ball, he hit 23 home runs.

What makes Franklin so special now isn’t just that he is ranked by MLB.com as number 47 out of 100 prospects, but that he’s in it for the game. Last year, he had a batting average of .322 in 57 games at Jackson and .243 in 64 games at Tacoma. So far in Spring Training, Franklin has a batting average of .143, getting off to a bit of a slow start. Hopefully we’ll get to see just what this 22 year old player is capable of real soon.

In the offseason, he’s had a .338 average with a .942 OPS in 20 games. Had the Justin Upton deal gone through, Franklin was one of the guys who would have been up for trade.

Whatever his stats are, Franklin is looking alive out on the field. In addition to his homer today, he has been at bat 6 times, hit twice, homered once, and had two RBIs.  His OPS is currently .429.

Keep an eye on Franklin. If he doesn’t make the Mariners’ final roster, it stands to reason that he may make a good player to trade. What do you think of his ball playing ability this season thus far?