Franklin comes off DL, produces

Nick Franklin was hitting everything in sight before missing nearly eight weeks with a concussion. On Friday, he picked up where he left off.

The Mariners' No. 1 prospect came off the disabled list and went 3-for-4 with a triple, an RBI, a stolen base and a run scored in the Double-A Jackson Generals' 3-2 loss to the Tennessee Smokies.

Wasting little time after his long DL stint, Franklin tripled in the opening inning on the third pitch he saw from Trey McNutt (3-5). He scored two batters later on Vinnie Catricala's single.

After getting called out on strikes in the third, the 20-year-old shortstop singled and stole a base in the fifth. Two innings later, he hit another single to plate Gabriel Noriega with the Generals' second run of the game.

Franklin was in the on-deck circle when Jake Shaffer grounded into a game-ending double play.

Selected by Seattle with the 27th overall pick in the 2009 Draft, Franklin has recorded at least two hits in each of his first five games at the Double-A level. He's batting .632 since moving up to the Southern League.

The Florida native was hitting .275 with five homers and 20 RBIs in 64 games for Class A Advanced High Desert before getting promoted in June. On June 27, however, he was struck on the jaw by a bat during batting practice and sustained a concussion.

While recovering, Franklin came down with a case of food poisoning, then was diagnosed with mononucleosis, the Seattle Times reported.

Nelson Perez delivered the decisive hit for Tennessee, launching a two-run homer in the seventh. The Smokies helped themselves by turning five double plays.